


Bugs and Fire | HazelSnow (1/3)

by YagiMatsu



Series: HazelSnow [1]
Category: Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: F/M, Novelization, Shipping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-26
Updated: 2019-06-27
Packaged: 2020-05-21 03:11:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 36
Words: 57,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19365262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YagiMatsu/pseuds/YagiMatsu
Summary: The white-haired man simpered. "Heh. You seem like the tough type, don't you? You don't ever seem to back down.""Right." the brunette tightened the hold on her Pokéball. "And I'll show you that in battle."--Gwen, 21 years old, has moved to Alola with her adopted mother, Rosetta Thatcher. She had persuaded her mom to go there because one - it was less crowded, and two - they would be able to relax there compared to Castelia City. Her mother couldn't put this down, since she agreed with what her daughter offered.Everything has been going well during their first week there, and to tell the truth, Gwen really didn't want to be a Trainer like her mother wanted her to. However, a certain Professor's visit will change that.Join Gwen on an adventure that'll take her life for quite a ride, especially with a new grudge against Team Skull's leader, Guzma. But will she keep that grudge, or let it slide?--"Looks like we both proved ourselves wrong about our hate."--Pairings: Guzma x Gwen(OC) (HazelSnow), SnowLily (Lillie x Hau), Lona (Gladion x Moon)Rated:Teen for Language and Unsettling Themes





	1. Prologue + Waking Up to a New Start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (This story was written back in 2017, so my writing style has changed since then. But I still wanted to put the chapters up on here)
> 
> (Also, I don't know what happened with the prologue, but I had to merge it with chapter one)

 

_Tears were running uncontrollably down my face, sobs melting away my voice. My olive green eyes were glassy from the said tears, and my back was rested up against the corner of the kitchen._

_I was trembling, seeing my parents approach me, anger etched on their faces. In their hands were the kitchen utensils they were using for dinner, and I had offered to help them out. I had accidentally broken a dish due to my shoe catching onto a loose piece of carpet , and that's when the vexation ensued._

_They lifted the utensils up, ready to strike. I held my arms up in front of me, cuts from previous attacks they did on me showing vividly on my pale skin._

_However, the sound of sirens outside interrupted them from what they were about to do. They dropped the utensils immediately, but felt like their shoes were glued to the floor. They knew that only meant one thing, and for some odd reason, I was the only one relieved in the sudden turn of events._

_Before I knew it, police came rushing in, and saw me. They immediately handcuffed my parents, then told me to wait for a moment._

_I watched in awe as my parents were whisked away in the cars, the sirens wailing once more. The police car took off, leaving only one more left._

_A feminine figure stepped into the doorway, their features having the slight line of the sun cast around them. When she took a few steps, that ceased entirely, and I was able to take in her full outlook._

_She had fair skin, and dark violet hair. Her dark green eyes held a warm essence to them, and small wrinkles decorated the edges of her mouth and eyes. She was in a police uniform, and I took it that she was probably the one in charge of the investigation._

_She proffered a hand out to me, a smile forming on her lips. I took a step back, unsure of what to do._

_"It's alright, little one." her voice was calm. "I'm here to help you. No seven year old should have gone through that at all."_

_I nodded, still nervous. "W-Who are you, miss?"_

_"I'm Chief Thatcher of the Unova Pokémon Police Force. And what's yours?"_

_"G-Gwendolyn Baum, miss. But everyone calls me Gwen."_

_"Well, nice to meet you, Gwen. My shift is almost over, once I deal with your parents. Wanna go home with me?"_

_For some reason, that made me more happier than I ever was. "I would love that, miss-"_

_"Call me Ronnie, Gwen." the woman lightly chuckled. "Come on, now. Let's head to the station."_

* * *

 

My eyes widened, and a sharp gasp left my throat. I soon shook my head, getting rid of the dream I had.

I knew it was more than just a dream, though. It happened when I was only seven years old. The hell I lived in had finally come to an end, thanks to Ronnie, my mother. She wants me to call her by her name, but I've gotten used to calling her Mom or Mother. ...But remembering those vivid scenes of my parents doing that to me still stuck with me, no matter what.

So many years have passed since then. Fourteen to be exact-

"Gwen, did you fall asleep on the boxes again?"

"Huh, what?" I blinked several times, my mind feeling hazy due to just waking up. My olive green eyes set on dark green ones, which belonged to Ronnie herself. "Oh, crap. Sorry about that. I'm more tired that I usually am." a yawn interrupted the rest of my sentence, dragging it out.

"It could be from the flight, dear." Ronnie chuckled a little. "It took quite a while moving from Unova to Alola, so I can understand why you're tired." She gently pushed me off of the box I was leaning on, which was labeled EXTRA FURNITURE. She picked it up, holding it underneath her arm.

I took notice of it. "Do you want me to help you with that?"

"I would appreciate that, Gwendolyn." the violet-haired woman grinned, her eyes setting on the three boxes behind me. "It's not much to unpack since this house was move-in ready, and quite inexpensive, too."

"Yeah." I grimaced at Ronnie calling me by my full name. "And I've told you to call me Gwen, Mom."

"Oh, sorry!" she let out a hearty laugh. "I keep on forgetting that."

There was a pause, lingering in the air between us. Ronnie just now seemed to notice that I was still in my light blue pajamas, and addressed that to me. My face doused completely in a rosy color, and I dashed upstairs to get some decent clothes on.

After ten minutes, I came back down. My hazel brown hair was combed, put into a low ponytail. I donned on a short sleeved turtleneck, with a slightly loose collar. Grey shorts and white sneakers finished off the look.

"Alright, I'm ready." And thank Arceus that I no longer look like a mess.

Ronnie nodded in response. "Alright! Let's get started."

o o o o o o

I was nearly out of breath when we finished. I know Ronnie said that it wasn't that much, but some of the stuff we packed was quite heavy.

I was resting on the couch, legs and arms splayed out as if I was in the process of making a snow angel. Ronnie took a moment to step outside on the porch, breathing in the fresh, Alola air. I decided to go ahead and join her. Even though the whole house had a welcoming look to it with the bright colors, it was nice to step away from it for a few moments.

When we went back inside, the doorbell rang. We glanced at each other, baffled of what it might be from. I offered to go and get it.

Hopefully, it wasn't a Pokémon professor, since I'm not that big on becoming an owner to Pokémon anytime soon. I mean, I don't have anything against Pokémon. I just don't think I'm ready for them just yet.

...Well, right when I opened the door, I wished that I didn't think those words in the first place.


	2. Uh, this is new?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen has woken up on her first day in Alola and comes across an odd-looking man. How will she take it when he tells her he's the Professor of the region?

I merely stared at the man before me. He was obviously a few years older than I was. He had straight dark hair, pulled into a tight, low bun, matched by a goatee that looked like an hourglass. He wore sunglasses that were nearly transparent, with lime green rims. He had a hat with blue semi circle in the middle, with an thick red border around it. A lab coat, dark capris, and sandals finished off the look.

But the most awkward part of his outfit was that he was wearing no shirt whatsoever. I had to blink a couple of times to make sure I was seeing things.

"Um, who are you?" I questioned him, an eyebrow raised.

"I'm Professor Kukui." he proffered his hand out to me. I took it, even though I was unsure of why he was here, until he resumed. "Your mother and I have been chatting on the computer about your guys' arrival. It's about Pokémon, yeah?"

I slowly turned my attention over to Ronnie, who smiled sheepishly. I groaned, resting my head on my palm.

"I should've known." I locked my eyes back on Kukui's dark ones. "I'm sorry, but I'm not really interested in training Pokemon, so that was a misunderstand-"

"I'm afraid not, cousin." he smiled, resting his hands on his hips. "Your mother wanted me to get you into becoming a Pokemon trainer. I understand if you don't want to, but I can assure you it is an amazing experience you won't forget. ...So, are you coming?"

I bit my bottom lip, the gears turning in my head. He had a point there. Perhaps it might be nice to try it out?

I nodded for my final decision, which made both the Professor and my mother smile brightly. A warm smile etched onto my lip at this.

"Okay. Let's get going to Iki Town, then!" he set out, and I glanced over at my shoulder at Ronnie.

She approached me, pulling me into a tight, but meaningful hug. She soon pulled away, letting me walk out of the house with Kukui, wishing me good luck.

I thanked her in reply before closing the door. I then closed my eyes, breathing in the warm summer air. It always helped me relax. I looked around at the serene water and palm trees going along with the breeze.

"Hey, Gwen! Is the sun playing tricks on your eyes? Iki Town is this way!"

I blinked, quickly pivoting around. I guess that I sometimes let my mind wander when looking at the beautiful weather, but I can see what he meant.

We resumed our walk for about five more minutes until we reached wooden stairs, leading to a small town with homes built out of wood. Kukui informed me that this was Iki Town, a small town to be exact. It led to the larger city, Hau'oli, but that was for another time.

Kukui was about to introduce me around the town when a tall, round man with grey hair and an Alolan outfit on approached. He started conversing with the Professor.

Not wanting to interrupt them, I looked around at the scenery.

Something platinum blonde caught my eye, and I had to narrow my eyes to see who it was. I couldn't make it out, so I decided to follow them, breaking into a run.

They seemed to be running away from something, soon stopping across a large bridge built in between two large cliffs. I could now make out their outlook, hich was a white dress with a medium, frilly skirt, matching dress shoes, and a large summer hat with a lavender bow on it. A cylinder-shaped bag of hers, with the top half of a Pokéball embedded on it, trembled a little.

I was right behind her when it suddenly gave in, revealing a small, mysterious creature. It had navy blue and dark purple colors, resembling that of a galaxy. It had a small black circle for a face, with bright yellow eyes and two loops going around it.

It flew down onto the middle of the bridge, looking frantically at its surroundings. Before it could go back, a couple of hazel-colored birds flew down, attempting to peck at it.

A whimper came from the blonde, and she immediately turned to face me. She must have sensed that I was there, and her nervous expression seemed to calm a little. She had brighter green eyes than I did, which thoroughly presented the concern she was feeling for the mysterious creature.

"Nebby...he's in trouble! Somebody save him!" the girl cried.

My heart broke at her words, and I set my eyes on the bridge, running right onto it. I wrapped my arms around Nebby, feeling the birds pecking at my hair and skin. It hurt like hell, but I tried to get through it.

My olive green eyes broadened when the bridge started to shake, soon giving way. I tried not to scream during the fall, expecting to hurt my back severely from it, only to feel something left me and Nebby both up, and back onto safe ground.

When I opened my eyes back up, I saw that it was a strange, bird-like Pokémon with a red Mohawk and golden tent-like wings. It departed soon after, leaving something behind.

'Well...that was weird..." I murmured, before hearing the blonde from before calling me. I got up, handing Nebby back to her.

"Thanks so much! You...you nearly hurt yourself back there, but I'm glad you and Nebby are both alright." she smiled warmly, soon putting it back into her bag, closing it partially.

"It's my pleasure, kid." I smiled warmly, crossing my arms. "Say, what's your name, by the way? I haven't seen you around here before."

"M-My name's Lillie. What's yours?"

"Gwendolyn, but everyone calls me Gwen. Nice to meet you, Lillie."

Lillie nodded in response. Something calling my name caught her attention, and we headed back to the spot that I was at before.

It turned out to be Kukui who was calling us back, waving when we were in his line of sight.

"I was wondering where you went off to." his eyes soon set on Lillie. "And I see you found Lillie, my assistant."

"Wait, what?" I glanced at the both of them, not expecting this. "How-"

"It's a long story. Professor Kukui will explain it later." Lillie informed me. "I-I think that the Professor wanted to talk to you about choosing a Pokémon."

I blinked at this. This was just one thing after another, wasn't it?

Without another word, I headed towards the Professor, curious of what he had in store.


	3. The Flames Start Flickering

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kukui takes Gwen to get her very first Pokemon and ends up meeting her rival, Hau.

Kukui led me over to the large, nearly hexagon-shaped stage, with two small sets of stairs on both the left and right side of it. Three Pokémon stood there, and I observed them one by one.

The first was a light, hazel-colored bird, with white circle around its eyes and belly. A mint green bow was on its chest, and when it opened its wings happily, the inside of the wings matched. Its name turned out to be Rowlett, and it was quite adorable.

The second one was a small, kitten, with a red muzzle and golden yellow eyes. Its paws were the same matching color of its muzzle, and its nose twitched curiously. Its name was Litten.

The last one was a small seal, splashed in a light navy blue color. A clown ruffle was around its neck, and its ears drooped down like a basset hounds. It squeaked upon seeing me. Kukui informed me that its name was Popplio.

"So, which one do you choose?" The grey-haired man told me, and Kukui told me that his name was Hala, the Kahuna of Iki Town.

I bit my bottom lip, setting my attention back on the Pokémon. I looked over them a couple of times, before locking my eyes on Litten.

"I'm going to choose this one." I smiled, and Litten tilted its head in response.

"Great choice." Hala grinned brightly. "She won't go into her Pokéball right away. You need to form a bond with her before you set off of your adventure."

I raised an eyebrow. I remember that when my Unova friend, Katherine, got her first Pokémon, she didn't have to go through this. Perhaps it depended on the region you were in? 

Shrugging that off, I took the stairs to the right, while Litten took the stairs to the left. I rested my hands on my knees, gazing at the adorable kitten Pokémon. After a few minutes, her ears drooped down, and she took a step back.

"It's alright, Litten. You can do this." Hala told her, and I nodded in response.

We continued to stare each other until Litten's expression changed. She jumped up and down several times, her tail wagging. Her small fangs emerged when she smiled.

"There you go!" The elder Kahuna laughed proudly. "You and Litten have achieved your bond. It will grow deeper over time, I assure you. Soon enough, you two will be like peas in a pod."

Litten came running over to me, and without hesitation, I picked her up, spinning her around. It was so heartwarming to see how jubilant the Pokémon was in my hold. I'm starting to understand why Kukui voiced that becoming a Trainer would be a life-changing experience.

"Are you thinking of naming her, Gwen?" Hala questioned me, and I took it that Kukui told him what my name was.

I let the gears turn in my head for a moment. Ember sounded like a good one, since Litten appeared to be a Fire type. No, Katherine already named her Emboar that. Perhaps Fira?

Yeah, Fira was good. I spoke that name out, and Litten meowed with glee.

Lillie, Kukui, and Hala grinned at this, and expressed how proud they were of having Fira choose me. I was curious of who was going to take Rowlett and Popplio later on.

However, that thought quickly subsided when Kukui handed me an item.

"It's a Trainer passport. It will have your photo, information, and important moments of you starting your adventure as a Trainer, yeah! Oh, and before I forget, here's your Pokedex."

i looked down at the Pokedex. Two small ovals poked from the top of the rectangular screen.

I merely gazed at it in shock, but to be frank, I was also intrigued. I so have to tell Katherine this when I have the time to call her! 

"The Pokedex is able to tell you where you're going, and tell you of your next location." Kukui told me. "Like a regular Pokedex, it can scan the Pokémon and tell you its type, information, and more. Fira is already registered, so go ahead and check it out if you want."

"...Alright." I tapped the Pokedex's screen, and Fira's image soon popped up. It told me about how its height, appearance, and type. Just as I had thought, it was a Fire type. I grinned happily. "That's amazing!"

Kukui nodded in agreement. "Technology is quite useful in Alola, cousin. The Pokedex happens to be quite an advanced part of it compared to the other regions. Perhaps they might develop those later in the future."

"Yeah, they might." My eyes beamed at that thought.

A few seconds of silence soon approached us. I questioned Kukui if there was anything else he needed me for, and he informed me with a shake of the head. He wanted me to visit his lab later, if I had the time.

I nodded in response before making my leave, waving to the three of them before walking down the path.

I was halfway through it when someone greeted me, and they happened to be heading right in my direction. When they came into view, I saw that they sported the same dark skin like Hala did, but they had seaweed green hair, dark eyes, and a dark shirt. Yellow shorts and sandals finished off his outlook.

"Hey there! I just saw that you talked with Professor Kukui and my grandfather!" his smile was bright. "The name's Hau."

"Er, my name's Gwen. I'm new here. Are you a Trainer, too?"

"Yeah. I just got my own Rowlett a while back. Nice to meet another Trainer. Oh, and the name's Hau. I take it that you might be my rival."

"What exactly do you mean by a rival? Do you mean that we'll often compete against other?"

"Yep!" he fished a Pokéball out of his pocket, which enlarged in his hands, becoming nearly the size of it. "Want to battle?"

I took my own Pokéball out, seeing it follow the same motion as Hau's. A confident smile soon appeared on my lips. "Sure, why not?"


	4. Befriending and Talks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen defeats Hau and discovers more about Alola, especially about Tapu Koko.

We both threw our Pokéballs out, watching as both Fira and Hau's Rowlett emerged from them.

Fira meowed before landing on all four of her paws, then looked at me to wait for a command. I slightly bit my bottom lip, not really knowing what to do.

Hau could see that I felt nervous, and smiled knowingly.

"All you have to do is call out any move that your Pokémon might know so they can follow that command. It's easy!"

"Alright. Thanks." I figured that Fira would know either know a move that lowers defense, and another that matches her type. I thought over it for a moment before calling out Ember.

Before I knew it, she spat out a small ball of fire, briefly engulfing Rowlett with it. He seemed to be on lower health than he was before.

"He's a Grass type, so Fire types are super effective against him."

"Oh." That I didn't know. That was interesting.

Hau commanded his Rowlett to use Tackle, nearly taking Fira down to the ground. She took a little bit of damage from the attack, but seemed to be alright overall.

I called out Tackle for Fira, to see if she knew it, and observed her copying the move the bird Pokémon just used on her. The rest of Rowlett's health went down, and he soon lost consciousness. 

Hau returned him to the Pokéball, congratulating me on winning.

"You did great, Gwen! I can see that you and Fira are already good friends." He gave me a small pile of money as a reward, which I put in my pocket for the time being. 

"Thanks, and the same goes for you and your Rowlett." I smiled in response, but something felt off about this battle.

Why was it so short? Was it because he had just one Pokémon? I wasn't used to battles being like that, having seen Katherine's battles against the Gym Leaders in Unova.

My thoughts were cut short when I noticed that Hala, Lillie, and Kukui were behind Hau. Have they been here the whole time, watching the battle unfold?

If so, they had proud smiles on their faces. Hala's smile faltered, however, when he noticed something shining in my pocket.

"Gwen, may you show me that shining stone you have in your pocket?" he questioned me, his voice full of curiosity.

Eyebrows knitted, I delved into my shorts pocket, giving him the stone. I wasn't even aware that I had that stone in there. I think I must've picked it up without realizing it. Sometimes my curiosity got the best of me.

I stayed silent while Hala studied the stone, before he exclaimed in surprise.

"Could it be?!"

Hau seemed to recognize it, too. "Isn't that..."

They both set their eyes on me.

"Gwen, you were rescued by Tapu Koko at the Bridge. Isn't that what I heard?"

I nodded, not really sure of what to say. I was baffled beyond words right now.

Hala nodded in thought, resting a hand on his round stomach. "So the Tapu even deigned to give you a stone. Perhaps you're here in Alola, Gwen, because that's where you're meant to be. You grew up in Unova, right, from what I heard from Kukui?"

"Yeah, but my hometown was in Sinnoh. Why?"

Hala gestured to the stone. "Allow me to borrow this for now. Don't worry. I'll return it to you tomorrow evening."

Kukui turned to see what was going on, after having a talk with Lillie.

"It seems that you have the makings of a fine Trainer." The elder man smiled proudly. "You must do us the honor of joining the festival tomorrow!"

I grinned at that. I haven't been to a festival before, so that sounded exciting. I heard Kukui's sandals crunch the ground underneath him before he said my name.

"First, I'll have to make sure you return home safe." he informed me. "Lillie, you two should come with us, yeah. Wouldn't want to go losing you twice in a day. You or that precious Pokémon of yours!"

"Yes, I will keep an eye on..." Lillie's voice trailed off for a moment. She looked behind her when she heard a sound from behind, only to see that it was Nebby itself. "Oh you! Would you try not to escape the very moment you are told not to wander off?!"

All of us laughed at this, including Lillie. Nebby seemed to be quite an interesting Pokémon, that's for sure.

However, I am curious to find out what Ronnie has to say once I get home.


	5. Back Home, Visiting Kukui

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ronnie is introduced to Gwen's Litten and Gwen ponders over her stay here in Alola.

I walked up the stairs to my house, Kukui following right behind me. The sound of his sandals were loud against the sandy path, completely overtaking the soft sounds of my sneakers.

We both came to a halt, and I went to knock on the door. Ronnie must have sensed I was there, because she opened the door almost a second later.

Her smile was warm upon seeing me. "Hey, Gwen! So, how did it go?"

I grinned in return. "It went quite well. I met Fira here, and we bonded right away."

"Fira...?" Ronnie rose an eyebrow, baffled at what she meant, until I stepped aside. Before her was the small Litten Gwen nicknamed earlier. "Oh! She's so precious! And what is her nickname from?"

I shrugged. "I don't really know. I saw it in a novel somewhere, and I thought it fit."

"I see. She seems to be the perfect pick for you, Gwen." Ronnie rested her hands on her hips, smiling thoughtfully. "You have quite a flaming attitude. In a good way, though!"

I merely giggled at this. "I can see what you mean, Mom."

Kukui then excused himself, once he reminded me that I needed to meet him after the festival tomorrow for something. The door closed behind him, nearly scaring Fira.

The young Litten then rested her eyes on Ronnie's Lillipup, and they talked together, in their language, I guess. They seemed to be hitting it off quite well.

Fira walked around the house, checking it out. She bumped into the doors, not really knowing that they could be opened. I couldn't help but laugh heartily at this, and opened the door to my room for her to check out.

To be honest, it was quite fascinating watching a Pokémon get used to the home of their Trainer. Also cute, seeing how inquisitive they are about their new surroundings. It was almost the same thing with a baby.

My thoughts got interrupted when I remembered what Kukui told me before leaving. I had been staring at my first Pokémon for ten minutes, and that had easily slipped my mind.

"Fira, we need to get to the Professor's lab." I got up from my bed, hearing the material sink in afterwards. I paused, realizing that the female Litten didn't hear me the first time. I exhaled. "Fira, come on, and get in the Pokéball so we can get going."

This got Fira's attention, and her ears twitched at the mention of the item. She jumped up and down, her tail wagging a tad. I got out the Pokeball, and she disappeared inside it immediately.

I got out of my room, saying my goodbyes to Ronnie before leaving the house.

I was one inch away from setting foot on the porch when I saw Lillie there. I nearly lost my footing.

"H-How did you get here?!" My olive green eyes stared at the young, platinum blonde girl, who looked shocked at my reaction.

Lillie looked down at the ground for a moment, then rested her timid, light green eyes on me. "Kukui told me where you lived. I-I think he told you to come over to the lab, right?"

I nodded, stepping off of the porch so that I was now standing in front of her. "Yeah. I take it you're going to escort me over there?"

Lillie nodded, her vocal response hard to hear. "He wanted me to take you there, since it's not that far from here. This is a lot of tall grass, however. Pokémon will be known to jump out. I've gotten frightened by some of them already."

"Yeah, I know." I gave her an understanding smile. I was the same way when Ronnie first introduced me to Pokémon when I was younger. She had introduced me to her young Lillipup, who was just hatched from an Egg. Her Lillipup had evolved into Herdier, and now Ronnie has her young, Matilda.

But I couldn't help but wonder why Lillie was scared of them, still. Was there something that made her frightened of them? ...Perhaps I could-

"Gwen, are you okay?"

I realized that I was looking absently at the sky when Lillie brought me out of my thoughts. I locked my eyes on her, tucking a strand of my hazel brown hair behind my ear.

"I'm fine. I was just thinking about what you said. If you don't mind me asking, why are you scared of Pokémon? Except for Nebby, that is."

We began walking down the path, eventually making it into the grass. Lillie didn't respond for a moment. She clutched the handle of her bag tightly.

"I-It's a long story, Gwen. It happened two years ago, and it still affects me. I don't wish to talk about it. S-Sorry."

"It's alright." I gave her an understanding nod, resting a hand in the same manner on her shoulder. "I shouldn't have asked you if I knew the experience was bad for you."

Lillie smiled slightly in response, but something about the expression in her eyes said differently. She might be hiding something...but I'm not sure.

Her eyes soon fell to my arms, noticing the small scars on them. My whole body froze at this, and my mind almost went blank.

I hadn't expected her to notice them so soon. She was about to question me on what happened, but I stopped her with a small smile. She understood what I meant, and looked away.

My smile quickly faltered afterwards. Shit. I can't believe that I wasn't able to open up to Lillie right away. She was slowly becoming one of my friends, and giving her that reply really stabbed me in the heart.

We stopped a few minutes later at a big beach house, splashed white with color. The roof looked like it had been worked on more than once, and I cocked an eyebrow in confusion.

I glanced at Lillie, wondering why in the world it was like that. That wasn't until we heard Kukui's loud voice booming through the house, with the sounds of a Pokémon playing along.

...I could've sworn Kukui said that his body was ready. What in the hell was he talking about?

The rumbling stopped a second later, and Kukui soon opened the door. Surprisingly, his clothes didn't seem to be ruined at all, even though it sounded like he was roughhousing with a Pokémon in there. I thought I could hear Lillie muttering about buying another lab coat.

His dark eyes rested on hers, and he smiled. They rested on me afterwards.

"Hey, Gwen. You're right on time. I have a lot to talk to you about. I'm sure you'll like it. Come on in, yeah!"

I let Lillie walk ahead of me, and I went into the house before her. Once we entered, I saw that the place was a lot bigger than it was on the outside. There was a huge, cylinder tank full of water Pokémon on the far right corner, and two doors for bedrooms on the left. There was a room at the top of them that could be gotten to by a pink painted ladder.

My eyes fell on the stairs, seeing that they leaded down to the basement. Kukui informed me that was where he did his research. My eyebrows rose with interest, but briefly, since he told me what he wanted to say earlier.

"I was going to give you a Rotom earlier to add to your Pokedex, but I completely forgot, cousin." he rubbed the back of his neck a tad nervously while he spoke. "But I thought that now was the best opportunity to do so, so I'll call it over here. Hey, Rotom!"

In the blink of an eye, an orange creature appeared. It had the shape of the number eight, but with the top being bigger than the bottom, with what looked like a thorn at the top. Electricity sparked out of it, almost forming wings. Its wide blue eyes stared curiously at Kukui.

Kukui smiled at the sight of the Pokemon, while Lillie and I gazed at it curiously.

"This is the Pokemon that's going to be your Pokedex, Gwen." Kukui explained, resting his hands on his hips. "Together they'll become the Rotomdex, the latest technology in Alola, like I had mentioned before. Isn't that amazing?"

I grinned at this, my eyes beaming. I've always thought it would be interesting to have this happen, since I'm a total nerd for technology merging with Pokemon...but not in a way that would harm them, of course. "Yeah, it is."

I had completely forgotten he mentioned that earlier. Wow, I am very absent minded sometimes.

The door suddenly opened behind us, revealing the sea green-haired kid from before.

He noticed the Rotomdex, and grinned with delight.

"Gwen, is that yours? It looks so cool!" Hau's eyes lightened up.

I laughed heartily at his reaction, nodding afterwards. "Yeah, it is. It's actually quite adorable, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is." Lillie and Hau spoke in unison, blushing slightly when they realized it.

I couldn't help but smile at this. It quickly faltered when Hau looked around, soon seeing the room above the others.

Lillie quickly stepped in between him and the ladder. Her expression had quickly changed from serene to nervous.

"N-No! You can't go up there. It...It's p-personal."

"Oh." Hau blinked. He seemed to understand, but I could tell by his body language that he was baffled by his words. "Okay."

"Say, Gwen. There's something else I need to give you as well." Kukui spoke up, snapping my attention away from the scene.

He fished something out of his pocket, soon handing it over to me. I took it from him, observing the pendant. It was in the shape of a boomerang, with a rectangle sticking out of the top. Four beads - pink, purple, red, yellow - were on the handle of it, and the designs on the pendant itself sported the same colors.

It was beautiful to look at. I wrapped it around my wrist, since I didn't bring anything with me to carry it in.

"What is it for?" I questioned the professor.

"It's a trail pendant. It lets the Captains in charge of the trials know that you're a trial goer. There are four islands that you need to go to in order to fight them."

My eyes broadened. I hadn't expected all of this information, but it definitely piqued my interest. "How many Captains are there?"

"Seven, and there's four Kahunas that govern those lands. Hala's one of them, cousin."

"Oh." I remembered that he told me that Hala was the Kahuna, but I didn't know it was for that purpose.

This was getting more interesting by the moment!

Seeing that the conversation was over, Hau questioned Kukui if he was going to have one as well. Kukui nodded, handing him one. The eleven-year old smiled with glee.

I smiled warmly at this. Hau reminded me of Katherine in a way, when we were younger. She was the exact same way when her mother had given her first Pokémon, a Tepig that grew up with her until she went on her journey.

This journey seemed to be bringing a lot of memories from Unova, and I felt happy about that.

Lillie snapped me out of my thoughts by calling my name, and I looked at her in confusion. The door slammed behind us, meaning that Hau had left after getting his pendant.

"Professor Kukui wanted me to show you around Hau'oli City." she spoke up, clutching the handles of her bag. "Also, to give you these as well if you want to get some more Pokémon, too."

She proffered her hand out, putting several small Pokéballs in my hand. I put them in one of my front jeans pockets to access later.

"Thanks." I grinned in addition to my words, and we soon headed out the door, waving goodbye to Kukui.

...To be honest, I couldn't believe that I wasn't keen on getting a Pokémon before, let alone starting a journey of my own.

Like I said before, I really need to call Katherine and tell her about this.


	6. Hau'Oli and...Team What Now?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen finds out about the trail captains and about Team Skull. She starts to have her suspicions about them.

I fished out my phone while Lillie and I walked over to the city, passing by my house in the neighborhood. I dialed Katherine's number, and heard the few rings, but it went straight to voicemail.

Exhaling, I tried again, and still got no response. I groaned.

"Something wrong, Gwen?"

I locked my olive green eyes on the platinum blonde. "Oh, nothing's wrong. I was just trying to call my friend, Katherine, to let her know about my new journey here in Alola."

"Oh." Lillie's eyes beamed with interest. That was the first time I had ever seen them do that. "Where does she live?"

"Unova. I grew up there before Ronnie and I moved to Alola a few days ago."

"I've heard of that region! Didn't a lot of bad things happen there once?"

My lips thinned into a line, and I looked down at the ground. I slowly nodded. "Yeah. It's a lot to explain. Katherine was involved in it during her journey as a Trainer, and had to save the region twice."

"Wow. She sounds like an amazing person to be that brave."

I giggled a little in agreement. "Yeah, she is."

We eventually made it to the city. Lillie let out a shriek when she noticed a Tauros right in front of us.

I hadn't known what it was until the Rotomdex suddenly flew out of my pocket, telling me the name of the Pokémon. It looked like a bull, but had three metal circles on its forehead, and the same number of tails.

The trainer next to it apologized, saying that Tauros often got excited, sometimes stopping to regain itself. He suggested having me pet it so it can move aside.

My eyes broadened for a brief moment, and I stretched my hand out towards the Pokémon. My hand folded in hesitation, but I fought against it and finally rested my hand on the Tauros' forehead.

It was soft to the touch, and the Pokémon enjoyed being petted. After I finished, it stepped aside, letting out a happy sound.

The trainer thanked me for doing this, and I nodded in response. He circled his arms around, away from each other, and I merely stared at him in confusion.

"...What're you doing?"

"Oh, this is the way to say hello in Alola! All you have to do is say Alola while doing this." he repeated the action again, and it clicked with me.

I tried it out, causing him to widely smile.

"There, you got it! I'm sure you'll have a good time here, miss!"

"Thanks!"

Lillie and I walked away from him, hearing the sounds of the Tauros' hoofs disappearing in the distance.

A second later, we were in the city itself. I gazed at the beautiful scenery around us, seeing the different buildings and the Pokémon Center just on the left of us. It was a lot more wider and big than I had mused.

"This...this is amazing!" My eyes shone with delight. There were people greeting each other with the Alolan wave.

Lillie smiled, nodding. "Yeah, it is."

I started walking ahead of Lillie, taking in the new place. Besides the Pokémon Center, there was an apparel and salon shops. A market was a few buildings down. I looked off to the left, seeing the beachfront where people in swimsuits swam in the ocean or rested on towels.

The place itself felt welcoming already.

Lillie noticed that I might be able to get around on my own without her help, so she went inside the Pokémon Center to look around.

People were waving to me with the Alolan style, and I responded with the same motion. I was just about to turn the corner when I heard two people muttering. Curious of what they were talking about, I listened in.

"Team Skull's been at it again." the woman spoke, exhaling afterwards knowingly.

"Yeah. They've tried time and time again to threaten Captain Iilma, but he's not having it." the man shook his head in disbelief, his arms crossed. "Those ruffians don't know when to stop."

My eyebrows knitted with confusion at this. Whatever Team Skull was, they didn't sound like a good group. I take it that they always liked to cause trouble, wherever they went. Hm.

They kind of sound like Team Plasma in a way...

I shook my head away from the thoughts, and exited the city for a moment. I had wanted to set the Pokéballs to good use, and I also wanted more Pokémon to add to my party. Fira would be delighted to have more friends.

I set into the grass, walking around in a circle until a shriek was heard. I nearly jumped at the sound, only to see that it was a small bird that had walked up to me.

The Rotomdex immediately described it as Pipipek, female. But I wasn't sure what its type was. Oh, well. I guess I'd find out when I capture it.

I sent Fira out of her Pokeball, and she safely landed on all fours. I commanded her to use Tackle, but the Pipipek beat me to it with her Peck attack.

Fira winced at the small jabs sent at her, but fought through it. She dashed towards the bird Pokémon, nearly sending them to the ground before coming back to me.

Pipipek had taken quite a lot of damage, and was nearly on her last limb. I got one of the Pokéballs out of my pocket, and threw it at her.

The Pokéball immediately enlarged, vaccuming the bird into it with a bright light. It soon fell into the grass with a soft thud, turning once...twice...three times. It clicked successfully, and I nearly yelled with joy.

The Rotomdex read on the Pokémon once I picked the Pokéball up, seeing it shrink to its normal size, with the Pokémon inside it.

It told me that it was a Normal/Flying type, and a little bit of its description.

"Are you thinking of nicknaming thizzzz Pokémon, Gwen?" it questioned me curiously, its leg and arm appendages flapping around as it circled around my head.

"Yeah, I am." The gears turned in my head, and I came up with several names. I grimaced at some, and crossed them out. I finally came across one that fitted perfectly. "How about Shiro?"

The Pokeball nudged upwards to my surprise.

"It seemzz that Shiro likes her nickname!" the Rotomdex replied happily. "I think you should get her to the Pokémon Center to heal her, Gwen."

I glanced over at the circular-roofed building, and pursed my lips. "Yeah, I think so, too. I also need to buy some potions with the money I brought over from Unova."

The Rotomdex merely nodded before retreating back to my left front pocket, and I stepped out of the grass, heading right for the Pokémon Center.

Lillie's eyes widened when she heard the doors ring, whipping around to see that I was there before her.

"Hey, Gwen! So, what do you think of Hau'oli so far?" she gave me a shy smile while I walked past her, handing my two Pokéballs to the light pink-haired nurse.

"I really like it so far." I grinned, looking over my shoulder at the young girl, soon turning my body fully so I rested up against the counter. "It already feels like home to me, surprisingly, even though I live in Iki Town." I paused for a moment, recollecting what I heard earlier. "Say, Lillie, have you ever heard of Team Skull?"

Lillie's light green eyes widened briefly before relaxing. She soon shook her head, her long hair swaying along with her movement. "N-No, I haven't. Well, I've heard stories about them. My brother had ran away from home two years ago and-" she gasped suddenly. "I-I hope he hasn't gone with them."

I walked over to her, giving her a reassuring smile. "Trust me, Lillie, he won't. I don't think he would ever get involved with a gang like them."

Lillie couldn't help but copy my smile. "T-Thanks, Gwen. Now that you mention it, I agree with you-"

"Miss Baum, your Pokémon are healed."

"Oh." I excused myself from Lillie for a moment, and received the Pokéballs from the nurse. I thanked her, and returned to Lillie. "So, where are we going to be heading now?"

"I-I think Professor Kukui wanted us to go downtown to talk with someone named Iilma." she spoke. "Apparently, he's the only Captain of this island."

I blinked, since I had heard his name before. "Alright. Go on ahead, then. I'll meet you outside once I get some Potions."

Lillie nodded, and exited the Pokémon Center.

I walked up to the shop counter, and conversed with the employee. I dug through my pockets to find something to put the sixteen potions in that I just bought, and my fingers felt something leathery. I soon pulled it out, seeing the long handle unfold right before me, stopping the handbag an inch from the floor.

Wow. I had completely forgotten that I had that with me. I thanked the employee once I put the potions in the bag, and opened the doors to the center.

I couldn't help but wonder about this Iilma guy. By his name, he sounds mysterious...


	7. The Fabulous Captain, Unneeded Encounters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen meets Ilima while in Hau'oli and encounters the grunts of Alola's bad gang. She won't hesitate in showing that she has a bone to pick with them.

I met up with Lillie once I walked out of the Center, and we headed down the road. We took a left, soon coming face-to-face with a tan-skinned man. He had short, dusty pink hair, bright blue eyes, and a fancy outfit on. A single, diamond earring hung from one of his ears.

He happened to notice Lillie and I there, and smiled. "Well, hello. Kukui told me about you two. The name's Ilima." he approached us, proffering his hand out to me aftewards. I took his hand and shook it. "Kukui's busy talking with that sea-green haired kid in the malsada shop, so he wanted me to converse with you, Gwen."

I could hear Lillie's frantic footsteps to the shop, then the door closing softly behind her. "He did?"

Ilima nodded, resting a hand on his hip. "Yes. You had received the amulet from him?"

I looked down at my right wrist, immedaitely feeling dumbfounded. All this time, I thought it was a pendant. It was an amulet!

"Y-Yeah, I did. Lillie said that you were the Captain of this island, right?"

"The one and only." Iilma grinned. "You will have to do a trial with me soon, in order to find something on Route 2 later. I'm not going to be giving the details right away on what it is, but it does have something to do with that Z-bracelet of yours Hala gave you."

I looked down at the z-shaped bracelet on my left wrist, and my eyes widened. I soon shook my head. Wow. I must've been tired to not notice it there before.

"Alright." I was a tad confused. I locked my eyes back on Ilima. "I...I don't know how it works, but I guess that I'll find out, then. So, when's the trial?"

"Soon. You're a new Trainer, are you not?"

"I am. I only have two Pokemon. A Litten and a Pipipek."

Ilima made a knowing sound. "I would like for you to train your Pokemon before battling me."

I nodded. That made sense. I said my goodbyes to him, agreeing to meet up in the same place later.

I turned the corner across the street, then another. I saw the Pokeball shaped gate, and opened it, soon walking into the grass once I closed it.

It didn't take long for a Pokemon to approach from the grass. Looking down, I saw that it was a metal sphere with two magnets on the side. A screw was at the top of its head, and one eye was on its face.

Rotomdex told me that it was a Magnemite. Looked like an Electric type to me.

I simpered at this. I needed an Electric Pokemon in my party sooner or later, so why not?

I sent out Fira, and commanded her to use Ember. The Magnemite took the damage of the fire, feeling the burn flicker at its body. Surprisingly, the Pokemon was still hanging on. 

Not wanting to using another attack, I rummaged through my handbag, finding one of the spare Pokeballs.

I threw it at the wounded Magnemite, seeing it go into the Pokeball. It moved three times, until the celebratory click was heard.

I read up on its information, and so that it was indeed an Electric type, with the dual being Steel. I soon nicknamed it Rai, and headed quickly to the Pokemon Center to let it heal.

I really didn't feel like finding any other Pokemon then. Just then, I noticed Fira in her Pokeball, shaking a little. I let her out, wondering what was wrong.

She looked over at the coffee store in the left corner of the Pokemon Center, and I went ahead and got a drink. The man behind the counter offered a couple heart-shaped Pokemon treats, splashed with many different colors.

Fira's ears went up at the sight of them, and it clicked with me what she wanted. I went ahead and let the rest of my Pokemon out, petting them and feeding them the Pokebeans, as the man called them.

They were really delighted afterwards, and seeing that they were taken care for at the moment, I went ahead and trained them in the grass for a little bit.

o o o o o

I ended up with no more Pokémon, since the Abras kept on teleporting away, and the other Magnemites kept on giving Shiro critical damage. But all in all, my Pokémon were further trained, and around their 10s in level. I could tell by the strength and energy they were putting into their battles.

Now I can see why Katherine was always so confident when she was raising her Pokémon and training them. It feels great!

I opened the gate, closing it behind me. I healed my Pokémon with the Potions I had with me, and soon turned the corner, back to the Malsada shop.

I stopped in my tracks, however, when I saw two grunts in front of Ilima, doing some weird rap-like moves. I immediately rushed over to the dusty rose-haired Captain's side, and that's when I got a good look at the two new people.

They were identical, surprisingly. They both had shaved blue hair underneath their white knitted hats. Silver lockets representing their logo - with the letter S representing a skull hung around their necks, and bandannas covering their mouths. Black tank tops, baggy pants with X's over the bottom, and sneakers finished off the look.

I...I couldn't find any words to say, except, "Who the hell are these two?"

The two grunts stopped doing their rap moves, and merely stared at me.

"What did you say, woman?" the first one, I suppose Grunt A, spoke, obviously disgruntled. "You don't know who we are?"

"We are Team Skull. The infamous ruffians of Alola!" Grunt B spoke, resuming his rap moves.

I exhaled at this. "I know now, but I don't give a care." I locked my olive green eyes on Ilima, who looked like he was snickering at what I just said. Now it was my turn to broaden my eyes.

I guess he never met someone that talked back to this weird rapper gang.

His snickering soon died out, and he rested his hand back on his hip, setting his eyes on the two grunts.

"Oh my, how terrifying." he spoke, ever so sarcastically. "Gwen, do you want to help me take out these two?"

I simpered. "Gladly."

I set my sights on the first grunt, while Ilima dealt with the second.

Let's hope this battle goes quickly. These grunts are already getting on my nerves.


	8. Beat Skulls, Trial Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen's able to defeat the grunts and is ready to begin her first trial, despite the shock of what's expected of her in it. She can't help but wonder about her new friend, Lillie, though.

It was a quick battle, as I had hoped, and the Team Skull grunts ran away. They threatened Ilima that they'll be back to steal his Pokemon again one day.

Ilima merely laughed at this, and I couldn't help but join in. The laughter died out a minute later, and he set his eyes on mine.

"So, have you trained your Pokemon enough for my trial?" he wondered.

I nodded. "Yeah, I have. They're a lot more stronger now that they were earlier." I got the Pokeballs out. "I'm ready for your trial."

Ilima simpered, closing his eyes for a moment. He lifted his head up dramatically. "Well, behold the trial of Captain Ilima!"

He soon sent out his first Pokemon, which was a Yungoos by what the Rotomdex said.

I sent out Fira, and we started the battle. I told her to use Tackle, but Ilima's Yungoos took the reins.

He charged towards Fira, causing her to get slightly damaged by the attack. She soon followed with the move I commanded, and the same level of damage went for his Pokemon as well.

It was my turn again, and the gears turned in my head to figure out what move to use next. Perhaps Ember could work?

I told my Litten to use that move, and it caused more damage than I thought it would to the Yungoos.

Yungoos followed up with the same move, and Fira nearly fell over. She was now on her last limbs.

I quickly got out a Potion, and healed her. I told her to use the same move again, when she had dodge Yungoos' third tackle in a row, and thankfully, that was the last move I had to use on him.

Yungoos fainted, and Ilima returned him back to his Pokeball. He soon sent out a monkey-like Pokemon with a paintbrush tail, drooped dog ears, and a beret that matched its light hair color. Its name was Smeargle.

Fira did a great job, so I switched her for Shiro. She chirped happily, flying down to the ground.

I thought I would be able to have the first turn, but Smeargle ended up taking the lead. His Pokemon used Tackle on Shiro, causing nearly critical damage for the Pipipek.

I went ahead and used Peck on Smeargle, which landed a critical hit, thankfully.

Smeargle used another Tackle, and Shiro dodged it, using Peck again. His last Pokemon fainted, and he repeated the same action he did with the defeated Yungoos.

"Wow, that was great, Gwen." Ilima grinned, handing me some money. "You really have a lot of potential as a Trainer."

My cheeks heated up from the compliment. "Thanks."

"No problem." the Captain smiled warmly, then looked over his shoulder. "There is a Grand Trial in the forest to your left, and straight ahead. Once you complete it, you'll have to deal with the Totem Pokemon. I wish you luck, Gwen!"

And with that, he was off, without a wave goodbye. My mouth parted in shock, but I soon shook it off.

He was quite an interesting Trainer. The approaching of those grunts didn't even faze him. Hm.

I headed back around the corner, after catching Hau munching on malsadas. I shook my head knowingly, with a smile etched on my lips. He's a silly child, that's for su-

"Gwen!"

I turned to see Lillie right next to me, almost out of breath. She soon regained it, locking her bright green eyes on mine.

"I nearly got lost again, and Kukui wants me back at the lab again. But I saw you there, fighting that man." she shyly smiled. "You have a lot of potential, like you did against Hau earlier."

I grinned. "Thanks, Lillie-"

"Oh! Ilima mentioned that you'll be going on your Grand Trial, right? If so, I wish you luck on your trial. You got this, Gwen."

She gave me a quick hug before running off. Nebby nearly popped out of her bag again, but she managed to keep him in there.

I couldn't help but beam at her words while I went back to the Pokémon Center to heal my Pokémon. Lillie was kind, despite being shy...perhaps from fear of Pokémon excluding Nebby.

The thought of why she was like that crossed my mind again, nagging at my brain.

What in the world happened to her?


	9. Prologue + Waking Up to a New Start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen's first trial is going smoothly but she ends up coming across the two grunts she just dealt with. What do they want now?

I walked into the forest, feeling the vast difference of the atmosphere. It felt more calm, yet slightly humid from the heat of the sun in the sky. Moss covered the rocks around the place, and some trees grew up to the top of the roof-like exterior.

Footsteps were heard behind me, and I looked over my shoulder to see that it was Ilima. I went to ask what was going on, until we saw a Yungoos run in front of us.

It stopped for a moment, surprised when it saw us, and dashed into its den underneath a large rock. It peeked its head out, looking around.

"You have to defeat three of those Pokémon that lurk in their dens." the dusty rose-haired Captain told me, nodding over to the Pokémon. "Afterwards, you'll then reach the pedestal deep within the cave...and collect the Z-Crystal there!" I was about to open my mouth when Ilima continued, lifting up a finger to let me know he wasn't finished. "However, you'll need to be completely in-sync with your Pokémon to succeed. Understood?"

This sounded easy. "Understood-"

The growling sound was heard from the exit above, vibrating the whole place. I nearly lost my balance.

"Oh dear!" Ilima sounded surprised, but his expression was completely calm, which I was a tad baffled about. "That's something else I forgot to mention. Many strong Pokémon make their home in this cave, but one stronger and more fearsome than all the rest, known as the Totem Pokémon, also resides here."

_Well, shit. Why didn't he tell me that earlier?!_

"It'll be the greatest obstacle you face as you attempt my trial!" Ilima grinned, not seeming to notice the shocked look on my face as registering it as dumbfounded. "By the way, you won't be able to catch any Pokémon here in Verdant Cavern during your trial. This is but one of the seven trials you'll face during your island challenge." he soon lifted up his hand, the confident expression of his prior to our first battle appearing on his face. "So it begins! The Trial of Ilima!"

He paused dramatically before turning on his heel, exiting the cavern. He looked over his shoulder, wishing me luck before leaving my sight.

I drew in a breath, counting to three before releasing it. I was contemplating why I even thought this was going to be easy as pie.

I took a few steps, and the Yungoos from before ran out. It screeched before I let my first Pokémon, Fira, out.

I commanded Fira to use her Ember move, causing a little bit of damage to the opposing Pokémon. It followed with Tackle, causing a critical hit on her.

She used Ember once more, thankfully landing a critical hit on the Yungoos. Before I knew it, it fainted, and wasn't to be seen again.

I walked over to the next den, feeling the sunlight spilling down from outside. Again, another Yungoos came out, and I dealt with it by using Fira. She nearly fainted from the battle, but I made sure to use a Potion to heal her, to play it safe.

Okay...so two are down. One more to go. I searched through the rest of the dens, trying to find the last one, but couldn't find it anywhere. I was about to go over the pedestal to get down to the first floor when footsteps, rushed, got my attention.

"Yo, yo, yo!" one of the people spoke, doing a rap motion.

"It's your Berry thieves, back again!" the other one followed his movements. "Remember us?"

I turned completely to see them, and I exhaled.

Oh, great. It's them again. I don't know what they meant by berry thieves, though. They must've done that after I fought them once.

"Yeah, and I wish I didn't." I frowned at the both of them, showing an expression that I really didn't care.

"Wow, she's good at burns." one of them whispered. "Wait until the boss meets her."

"Shut up!" the other one spoke in the same level to him before changing it back to normal. "So you don't know who we are?"

"I didn't say tha-"

Both of the grunts switched places, and one of them tried to see if I recognized them now.

"Who even cares about that anyway?!" the first one spoke, slightly annoyed. "We're here to mess her trial up, yo!"

"Oh, yeah, that's right! Yo, let's get that Pokémon, homie!"

The first Grunt walked over to me, doing that usual rapper motion. I sent out Fira after he had a strange Pokémon with a short, elephant-like nose and a brown underside. After taking a good look, I recognized it as a Drowzee.

I commanded Fira to use Tackle, which landed a powerful hit on Drowzee.

Drowzee used Psychic, which wasn't really that effective by how lightly it hit Fira. Fira used the same move again, taking the opposing Pokémon down completely.

Of course, the Grunt acted all surprised at me defeating him, before handing some reward money to me.

"What's up with that?" he questioned.

"For real though?!" the second one agreed. "I can't get my skull around it! This woman's mad strong, yo!"

They were about to walk away for a moment, but stopped suddenly, conversing once more.

"Naw, not even that! She's straight up dangerous, homie!"

"I don't know, man." the first exhaled. "Isn't this whole place trouble?!"

"Yeah, it totally is! This Pokémon are stronger than the ones we've fought! We shouldn't have been here in the first place."

They ran away, but the first one came back, with a concerned look on his face.

"Yo, woman! You know there's a tremendously strong  Pokémon lurking back here somewhere, right? I'd run if I were you."

"No, wait!" the other one spoke behind him. "We're not going out like that! Go stand over that den and catch that skulking Yungoos, yo! I'll take the other one."

Without any more words, they went over to two of the dens, making it a lot more easier to find the last Yungos.

I walked over to the last den, hearing the usual screech. Out came out something that looked like Yungoos, but on its hind legs. It had blonde fur draped over its forehead, resembling hair. According to Rotomdex, it was a Gumshoos, Yungoos' evolution.

Deciding to switch things up a bit, I sent out Rai.

I commanded the Magnemite to use Thunder Shock, which caused a little bit of damage on the Yungoos.

Yungoos followed up with Tackle, nearly causing Rai to faint. Rai used the same attack, thankfully making the Pokémon faint. Once I got the dirt off of him, I used a Potion on the Electric Pokémon.

I went over to the top of the pedestal afterwards. I stopped in my tracks, wanting to thank the grunts for helping me out, but they had disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Well, then. Guess I might have to thank them later...

The guy in front of the pedestal greeted me, telling me what he was in charge of. Seeing that I had beaten all three of the Pokémon in their dens, he let me through.

The sunlight greeted me when I stepped through. I was met with a small floor of grass, with rocks surrounding it. A stand was across from me, and something was shining brightly in it.

I immediately walked over, reaching my hand into the stand, relieved that it wasn't glass.

However, the sound of a roar stopped me from doing so.

I slowly looked up, nearly falling on the ground when my eyes met with the largest Gumshoos I had ever seen.

My face nearly paled at the sight of it, and I backed up a bit. It jumped off of the small cliff it was on, nearly causing the ground underneath it to vibrate.

It roared loudly. A bright orange aura soon engulfed it, and right then and there, I knew this was the Totem Pokémon.

My heart raced quickly, pounding in my ears. I got out Shiro's Pokeball.

...Well, this is it. Time to fight this Pokémon...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	10. The First Totem and Hala

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen takes on the Totem Pokemon and gets her first Z-Crystal. Now she just has to defeat Kahuna Hala.

A knot formed in my throat, and I tightened the hold on my Pokeball, but not to the point that it would break. Sweat started to emerge on my temples, running down my face. I lightly bit my bottom lip before releasing my teeth from it.

I threw Fira's Pokeball out, and let her take the first hits. The Gumshoos roared, soon being engulfed in an orange aura. I stepped back a moment, and so did my Litten.

We hadn't seen this before. Is this what happens to Totem Pokémon when they are about to fight a Trainer? If so, that's really cool, not gonna li-

Okay. I need to get back on track. I swallowed the nervous saliva that had built up in my mouth, and I commanded Fira to use Tackle.

The Gumshoos was slightly damaged by the attack, and reacted to it with its Hyper Fang move.

Fira winced when it nearly bit into her fur, but she wasn't hurt from it entirely, thankfully.

She used Ember this time, and the Totem Pokémon hissed at the flames hitting it.

It returned with another bite, which was critical this time. Fira was whimpering at the pain on the left side of her face, and I knew I had to switch her out. I returned her back to her Pokeball, and threw Shiro out.

The huge Yungshoos called into the air for help once my Pipipek flew out of its Pokeball, but none came. It growled in annoyance, apparently hoping to try again later.

I commanded Shiro to use Peck, and it landed a critical hit on the Gumshoos, and it winced at the attack. It went with its Hyper Fang, but Shiro missed it just in time.

She used Peck again, hitting the last blow to the Totem Pokémon. It fainted, hitting the ground so hard it nearly vibrated underneath our feet.

My eyes had widened at this. I hadn't expected this to happen so quickly. Perhaps it was because of it not getting assistance a few seconds ago.

"Wow. That was amazing, Gwen!"

I pivoted around to see Ilima clapping behind me, a proud smile etched on his lips. He walked past me for a moment, healing the Pokémon before letting it return to the spot it was before so it could rest.

"I didn't think that you could get him on that one try. I had trained this Pokémon, but it seems that he wasn't strong enough for your Pokémon." he laughed heartily, then nodded to the Z-Crystal in the stand. "...Since you beat him, you know what that means, right? You take that crystal. It's finally yours."

I turned to the stand, walking over to it. I slowly proffered my hand, soon curling my fingers around the crystal. I stared at the beauty, seeing the sunlight glisten off of it. I put the Crystal inside my handbag.

"Oh, and this is how you activate it."

Ilima started the move by crossing his arms, then following with a few more movements before crossing his arms in a parallel fashion, but not together. 

I made a slight sound in reply. It looked easy to remember...I hope.

"There you have it. Now, you're ready to fight Hala, and you're off to the next island. I wish you luck, Gwen!"

I smiled in return and coped his wave before leaving, and exited the cavern entirely. I went straight for the Pokémon Center afterwards to heal my Pokémon, and headed to Iki Town.

I came across some Trainers along the way, and battled them. I used the Potions afterwards on my Pokémon, feeding them Pokebeans as rewards.

After one more battle, I had set foot in the town I had left a few hours ago. It still felt the same, honestly, but I could see Lillie, Kukui, and Hau waiting for me in the distance. They were talking to each other, but I didn't know what it was about.

My Pokémon were low on stamina, anyway, so I had to pay a quick visit to Ronnie before I went up to the town again.

When I entered the house, she smiled at me, her dark magenta hair swaying with her movement. 

"Hey, Gwen! How is the journey going so far?" she questioned me, stepping away from the kitchen for a moment, cleaning towel in her hand.

"It's going great." I gave her a somewhat exhausted smile in return. "I've beaten Ilima's trial, and I'm about to fight the Kahuna himself."

"Wow, already?" Ronnie's eyebrows rose in surprise, but soon descended down to their normal level. "That's amazing! I take it you're going to rest your Pokémon for a moment."

"Yeah, I am, but I don't have many Potions left."

"That's alright. I'll heal them for you, Gwen."

Ronnie got out some Potions, telling me to let all of my Pokémon out. I followed her instructions, observing her giving them the items. She then used what looked like Elixir on them to help raise their move numbers.

"There, that should do it." she happened to notice my surprised look once I got my three Pokémon back in their Pokéballs, and chuckled. "I served as a volunteer for the Pokémon Center when I was younger, before getting into the Police Force, Gwen."

"Oh." That made sense. I thanked Ronnie, giving her a quick hug before stepping out of the house, making my way to the town.

The warm, crisp air greeted me, and the heat beat down on me instantly. It wasn't humid, thankfully, so I didn't have to worry about sweating that much.

Kukui looked up when he saw me approaching, and Lillie followed where his eyes went. A shy smile formed on her lips.

"Hey, Gwen! Ilima had told me that you had finished your trial with him, yeah!" Kukui rested his hands on his hips. "Congratulations."

"Thanks." I grinned.

"Now, it's time for you to fight Hala. Man, time flies fast, doesn't it?" the Professor laughed. "I'm sure you're going to beat him in no time."

Lillie nodded, glancing quickly at her bag to make sure Nebby wasn't trying to escape again. "I-I agree with Professor Kukui. Good luck!"

I smiled warmly in response, watching them wave to me while I walked ahead to the stage.

There, Hala was waiting for me, his hand rested on his round stomach. He let out a hearty laugh once I set foot on the stage.

"I didn't think you would be here so soon, Gwen." the old man grinned proudly, which was kind of hard to make out due to his thick mustache. "It feels like your journey has just begun, even though you've already taken the first few steps."

I giggled at this. "Yeah, that's true, sir. I can't believe it, either...but, I'm ready."

"Well, then." Hala took a wide step forward, then another, but backwards. It nearly vibrated the stage beneath us. He set his hands out in a karate motion. "Let's get the battle started!"


	11. Defeated Trial, Onto the Next Island

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen's ready to go to the next island after her beating Hala. She's excited to see what's in store for her, Hau, and Lillie.

I sent my Pokeball out, having switched Shiro with Fira. She leaped out of it, getting ready for whatever Hala had in store.

The elder Kahuna sent out a Pokémon with blue gloves, strange face, and a wide smile. It turned out it was Makuhita, which took me a moment to recognize what it was.

I commanded Fira to use Ember, grazing the Fighting Pokémon just a little.

His Makuhita followed with Stomp, and thankfully, Fira didn't take that much damage from it.

The female Litten followed up with Tackle, and bounced back once she hit Makhuhita. It seemed to take more damage than Ember did.

Makuhita used Stomp once more, and I held my breath, hoping Fira wouldn't end up getting hit.

Unfortunately, she did, and was wobbling around. Her eyes closed, and she fell on her side.

The breath I held in went out sharply, and I had to put her back in her Pokeball.

Fira had fainted, right before my eyes. That's...that's never happened to me before, but I've seen it happen a lot, even now. Perhaps it hits home when it happens to your Pokémon.

Shaking my head to dissolve those thoughts, I sent out Shiro, hoping this would work.

Seeing that I sent another Pokémon out, Hala commanded his Fighting type Pokémon to use Take Down.

Shiro surprisingly dodged it, and followed up with Peck that I had told her to use before Makhita had attempted its attack.

Makuhita winced at the stinging of my Pipipek's beak, but soon enough, he fell straight forward, hitting the ground with a thud. Hala returned him to his Pokeball, and sent out Mankey.

I jutted my lip out, trying to think of a good move to use. It seemed that Peck was quite effective on Hala's previous Pokémon, considering it was a pure Fighting type. I could see from the monkey Pokémon's stance that it was the same type. So I decided to have my Pokémon use that move again.

Hala's Mankey took the critical hit, and was now barely able to stand. He attempted to use Take Down on Shiro, but missed due to being weakened by her first Peck. She used it again, and he fell down, having to be returned to his Pokeball.

Hala then sent out a strange, crab-looking Pokémon. At first, I thought it was one of those crab Pokémon I saw in Unova that were from Kanto, but it wasn't.

According to Rotomdex, it was Crabrawler. My eyes widened for a moment. So it was a Fighting and an Ice type. That was really interes-

"Crabrawler, use Power-Up Punch!"

I was almost taken back from his command, and Shiro ended up taking the hit. She was on her last legs energy wise, and I knew I had to do something.

I rummaged through my bag, trying to find one of those yellow diamond items called Revives. I felt the familiar glass-like texture on my fingers, and I got it out. I brought Fira out of her Pokeball, bringing her energy back. She got up,feeling refreshed.

However, Shiro wasn't so lucky. Crabrawler used the powerful attack once more, and she ended up fainting. I used the Potion on Fira to replenish the rest of her energy, and then put the fainted Pipipek back into her Pokeball.

Thankfully, the Crabrawler didn't take the first hit once Fira stepped back onto the stage. I could hear cheers coming from Kukui, Lillie, and some other people while I tried to think of a good move to use-

Wait a moment. Fira knows Ember, a Fire type move. Fire is really strong against ice, compared to water, its liquid form. How could've I been so stupid for that thinking that before?

I commanded my Litten to use Ember, and watched as it nearly singed the crab Pokémon. His energy completely went down, and he was sent back to his Pokeball.

Fira looked up at me, smiling proudly. Her tail was swishing back and forth in the same manner. Her attitude quickly dissipated when Hala's hearty laugh broke the silence that threatened to form in the place.

"Wow. I don't know what to say, Gwen. You really showed that you have a lot of trust in your Pokémon, and they've come a long way in such a short time. I applaud you on that."

I felt my cheeks heat up from the compliment, and I folded my hands behind my back, bowing slightly. "T-Thank you, sir."

"It's no problem. Here, take this as a gift for completing the first Grand Trial!"

He stuck his hand out, and I took what he had in his hand. I saw that it was quite similar to the Normal Z-Crystal that I had received earlier, but was a light crimson tint with a fist in the center of it. It sparkled brightly.

That same, awed expression was on my face. I thanked Hala, putting it in my bag to use later.

He smiled in response. "I wish you luck on the future trials, Gwen. If you don't mind me asking, how old are you?"

"I'm twenty-one, sir."

Hala gave me a shocked look, and his eyebrows rose in the same manner. "Wow! I honestly thought you were eighteen. Ha!" he used that hearty laugh once more. "That's amazing. It's not everyday I meet a trailgoer that's ten years older than the usual kids that participate in this trials."

"Really?" I cocked an eyebrow.

"Yep. There's another new Trainer that just started her journey. She's only eleven, but I'm sure you'll be facing her later on. She's already proven herself to be a good Trainer, just like you."

"...Already?" I didn't mean to sound rude, but I found that quite interesting. "What's her name?"

"Selene Moon. But she just goes by her surname. Anyways, I think it's time for you to go to the next island, since you've beaten Ilima and me. See you later!"

I nodded in return, waving to him before joining Lillie and Kukui. They congratulated me on the battle, and soon enough, Hau came up to us. He wasn't able to see what was going on earlier, but he was just as excited about the trip to the next island as we were.

Once Hau had defeated his grandfather at the stage - of which he did a great job at, receiving a pat on the head from Hala - he joined us at the docks.

There, we got on the ship, feeling the breeze hitting us in the face. It felt calming to me, even though this was my first time taking a boat - wait, no, it wasn't. I was on some of the boats with Katherine back in Unova when she was on her journey.

Lillie had to hold onto her hat so it wouldn't blow away from the wind.

Hau was just enjoying himself, smiling widely. He didn't happen to notice the emerald eyed girl looking at him, blushing slightly.

I nearly lost my balance a couple of times, and had to fix my posture into a front stance to prevent any more clumsy scenes.

I wondered what else was in store for us when we got to the next island. I couldn't wait.


	12. Welcome to Akala Island! And who is this kid?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen, Hau, Lillie, and Kukui reach Akala Island. Besides Hau's corny pun, Gwen doesn't expect to meet Gladion, whom she assumes has to be related to Lillie, no doubt. But she can't help but wonder - why is he part of Team Skull?

The island came into view about thirty minutes later, and Hau immediately jumped off of the boat, hitting his feet hard on the dock. I merely stared at him, getting off of the boat carefully.

"...Doesn't...doesn't that hurt your feet, jumping like that?" I questioned him.

"Nope! And I finally get to say, land ahoy! Get it?"

My eyebrows descended in confusion. "No, not really."

The sea-green haired kid frowned. "Aw, man. I thought you get the joke!"

"I got it!" Kukui laughed, and I gave him the same look.

What in the ever living world did they mean by that joke? I'm afraid I wouldn't understand that at all, even in the future...

We stepped off of the dock, and onto the road going into the first city. Two people walked up to us. One was a tall, dark skinned woman with short dark hair, dull grey eyes, and an interesting outfit on. The other was a younger girl with a lighter skin color, hair the color of grass, and bright green eyes.

The elder introduced herself as Olivia, the Kahuna of Akala Island. The younger one introduced herself as Mallow, one of the captains.

We told her our names, and they nodded in response, glad to make our acquiantance. After a small talk, they left. Mallow stopped for a moment, reminding me about stopping by her trial spot later. I told her I would be there.

Kukui went off to check the sights again, leaving Hau, Lillie, and me there.

"So, where are you guys going now?" I questioned the both of them.

Lillie turned to face me. "Well, Nebby wants to visit the Ruins of Life. I'm not sure why, but if he wants to go, I-I'll go with him. I hope I don't get lost around here..."

"I'm sure you'll be fine, Lillie."

"T-Thanks, Gwen." And with that, she was off.

I turned to face Hau, and was about to open my mouth when he said that he would be trying out the trials once he had some malasadas. I couldn't help but laugh.

Even though I've only known him and Lillie for a couple of hours, I could tell he loved those to bits. He was quite energetic for his age, wasn't he?

He went off without another word as well, so I decided to take a look around the place, releasing my Litten so she could walk around with me. This city had a lot of Chinese influence in it, which I found very interesting. I had seen buildings like this in the pictures of the Kanto region. It's always fascinated me.

Something pawing at my leg got my attention, and I looked down to see Fira. She was wagging her tail, wanting to be petted. I smiled, leaning down to pet her. Right at the moment, however, she saw my ponytail, thinking it was something to play with. I yelped at this, and had to get my ponytail holder away from her.

I checked to see if it was still in good condition, and unfortunately, it wasn't. So I put it in my shorts pocket to dispose of later. I realized that my hair felt more free out of its usual holder, and felt a lot better without all that stress added onto it. Perhaps I should wear my hair down more often.

Pushing that thought aside, I explored more of the town. I couldn't find anything interesting besides the TM shop, a store that sold evolution stones, and a Pokemon Center. So I went ahead on Route 5, seeing Hau there.

It looked like he was battling someone, but I wasn't sure. I walked further, my eyes widening when I saw the slightly older kid.

He had platnium blond hair, his bangs sharply swept to the side. He had the same emerald green eyes Lillie had, but unlike her pure white outfit, his was black and red, with torn sleeves and jeans.

Something in my head immediately put two and two together. Lillie and this person were related, and I could tell by their facial features.

...What the hell was her brother doing here?

This kid let out a sound of frustration when he returned an odd-looking Pokémon. He was angry at Hau for being so happy about the battle.

"Are you even taking this seriously?" the blond snapped at him, but the jubilant, young teen didn't seem to even be fazed by his anger. "...You shoud've fought a lot harder, then. Perhaps you might take into a more serious note then."

His eyes soon locked on mine, and I froze.

Shit. My shoes must've squeaked.

"Who're you? You look too old to be a trialgoer." he observed my outfit, crossing his arms in an odd fashion.

"I'm...I'm Gwen Baum. And you are...?"

"Gladion." he was straight to the point; no stuttering like his sister did. "I'm the enforcer of Team Skull. I take it you want to battle?"

I went to say no, but by his expression, this kid wouldn't take no for an answer. Exhaling, I took a Pokeball out of my handbag.

Out came Rai, since I wanted to use him more in battles.

Gladion sent out that weird Pokemon from before. It looked feral in a way, but it had a helmet concealing its face, save for the eyes. To be honest, I found it quite menacing.

According to the Rotomdex, its name was Type:Null. What?!

Getting my head out of the clouds, I commanded Rai to use Thunder Shock. It grazed Type:Null a little bit, and it used Tackle in return.

Rai took a little bit of damage, but used the same move again, since I couldn't find any that could work effectively against this odd creature.

The move hit it more critically, and it used Tackle in response.

It was critical for Rai as well, and he was hanging on by a thread. I bit my bottom lip.

I didn't want to risk Rai fainting from another attack of the opposing Pokemon. So I went ahead and switched him out with Fira.

Type:Null attempted to use Scratch this time, but Fira thankfully dodged it. She used Ember in return, finishing the Pokemon off. It soon fell to its side, and Gladion returned it back to its Pokeball.

His eyes widened when the realization of him losing occured. He nearly yelled, throwing his head back before bringing it to its normal angle. "How annoying! How did I lose to a woman older than me?!"

I was taken aback by this at first, but a slight laugh escaped my throat without even realizing it. He gave me an odd look.

"What was that for?"

"...Well, you don't seem to be like the Team Skull Grunts that I had met on the previous island."

"Of course I'm not like them-"

The sound of the said grunts cut him off, and he turned his back away from them.

"We saw what happened." one of them said. He had a gruffier voice than the one I met before. "We had come to check up on you, only to see you get beat by a woman nearly twice your age!"

"Yeah." the other spoke, and I saw that she was dressed differently than her companion. She had shoulder-length magenta hair and matching eyes. "All you've done in the past is push us away when we try to help, and we thought that you might need this assitance again."

"Well, I don't." Gladion replied, coldly.

"That's not cool!" the male grunt crossed his arms. "Listen, kid. It's true the boss likes ya, but let's face it. You'll never be a part of Team Skull. Got it?"

Gladion didn't say a word, and they left him there.

I simply stared at the grunts until they left our sight. How...how could they have been so cruel towards him? Were they jealous that whoever this boss of theirs was liked him? Or was it something else entirely?

The blonde glanced at me and Hau before walking away. He held Type:Null's Pokeball tightly in his hand, but not to the point that he would break it.

"What in the world was that?" I couldn't find the right words, but Hau merely shrugged.

"I don't know. I don't think we'll be seeing him again, though."

Hau healed my Pokemon for me, and I thanked him before he went off. My throat suddenly felt dry,and I went into the Pokemon Center before me to get something to drink.

After I purchased the Roserade Tea there, and put the extra Poke Beans in my bag, I couldn't help but think over what happened. It felt like everything happened all at once, and I had trouble processing it.

...Apparently, this Team Skull seemed more complex than I thought it was. Who knows what else will happen if I had any more encounters with them?


	13. Water, Grass, and Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen explains the three said trials before her battle against Olivia. Will she able to go against Akala's Kahuna?

I had cleared my head from what happened earlier with Gladion and those two Team Skull grunts, and went on with the Water trial.

I had come across Lana at her trial, which was at Brooklet Hill. She had given me Lapras to use with my Ride Pager, which I had received from that one guy in Hau'oli City a while back...but I er, never really used it until now. 

It was easy to do...at first. I was able to defeat the Wishiwashi with Rai, since I knew that Fira would faint in an instant from the water attacks, but I found out why they gathered into the larger lake later on. They had formed into the school version of themselves, and let me tell you...

It's scary as shit.

After many revives and Potions, I defeated the Totem Pokémon, and got the Waterium Z from Lana. It was beautiful, with a light blue color like the ocean.

She had cracked a joke that I fell for, and her response was quite...well, savage, for a kid her age. I'm surprised how she's able to keep such a positive face while she's saying that. Hm. She kind of reminds me of Hau when he's joking.

I had happened to capture a Psyduck after the trial, and named her Kasumi. She had gotten a little stronger when I was trying to head out of Brooklet Hill, and I had given her the new Z-Crystal then.

Fira had evolved after the trial, and I was quite confused at first when I watched her entire body turn to white. She had become slightly larger, and had a light orange color matching with her black fur. She had on a collar, with a flame ball at the end.

Rotomdex informed me that the Pokémon that she evolved into was Torracat, a Fire and Dark dual type. I smiled at this, finding that quite interesting.

Shiro also evolved, into a larger version of a woodpecker, I guess you could say. Rotomdex told me she had turned into Trumbeak, which was...quite a peculiar name for a Pokémon, but I liked it.

It felt great seeing my Pokémon evolve and adapt for the first time, not to mention proud. Now I know why Katherine calls her Pokémon her babies. They're just so precious, no matter how big they are.

I fed them Poke Beans once I healed them at the Pokémon Center, and moved onto the Fire Trial. 

I had come across Kiawe, the dark skinned teen with the flame-like hair, before in the Battle Royal Dome. Gladion had appeared there before, but I hadn't seen him battle at all since I didn't participate. The Masked Royal had won the battle, and I could've sworn he was Professor Kukui - no, scratch that, he is Professor Kukui. But Kukui tried to pretend he didn't know what I was talking about.

Kiawe had done his Trial differently than Lana's, with his Alolan Marowak's dancing with their flame-tipped bone clubs, stopping so I could memorize their poses. A Hiker had happened to photobomb the second time, and I nearly died of laughter. Same with the Totem Pokémon, Salazzle, adding herself on the last dance.

She was hard to beat, honestly. I nearly forgot to use Psyduck's Z-Move, Hydro Vortex, and thankfully, that saved me a lot of time. Kiawe had given me the Firum Z in return, and I nearly jumped in the air with excitement. It had to be my favorite Z-Crystal out of all of them, with the bright orange color. Fira was going to love this.

I gave her the Crystal once I healed my Pokémon, soon saying my goodbyes to Kiawe once he held a small dance in celebration of me beating him. He was still dumbfounded as of how I was able to solve those dances so easily.

Finally, I headed to Mallow's Trial at Lush Jungle. I felt relieved to finally be battling her. She seems like a nice, optimistic person. She had given me Stoutland Search on my Ride Pager, and introduced me to Hapu, a young woman who I almost mistook for a kid. I apologized when that had slipped out of my mouth, but she wasn't insulted in the slightest. Her Mudsdale accidentally scared me, though, with its hooves.

Thoughts aside, it took me a while to find the ingredients Mallow needed for the trial. Pokémon kept on coming out of the grass.

Lurantis, the Totem Pokémon, was slightly more difficult to beat once I got the ingredients, and Lana and Kiawe had arrived to help Mallow with the food. I used Fira's new move, Flame Charge, on Lurantis towards the end, and it helped. Mallow gave me the Grassium Z, telling me how to use it.

Lana and Kiawe soon tried the food she had cooked for Lurantis, since there was some left over. Their mouths felt like they were melting once they tasted it. I tried it, and to be honest, I couldn't blame them. I had quickly said my goodbyes to Mallow, and she huffed, wondering why her friends didn't have any taste.

I took in a deep breath once I got out of Lush Jungle. Thankfully, the melting feeling didn't last for long, so I didn't have to worry about getting MooMoo Milk to get rid of it. I healed my Pokémon in the Pokémon Center once more.

When I went back to Heahea City to buy some more Hyper Potions - I had sold my other Potions to buy those, I went to Olivia's stone store again, only to see a strange looking Pokémon there.

He handed me a note, and I read it.

Hey, Gwen.

I remember telling you to meet me at my store here, but there's been some changes. Nosepass keeps an eye on the store while I'm gone. I'm at the Ruins of Life, so meet me there and we'll have the Grand Trial there. See you!

\- Olivia

Ah, that made sense. I thanked Nosepass for the letter, returning it to him. I immediately headed for the Ruins of Life. Rotomdex helped guide me where to go.

Little did I know that someone was watching me from the distance. Their footsteps were quiet during their pursue.


	14. The Vibrant-Haired Admin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Plumeria interrupts Gwen's trip to meet up with Olivia. It doesn't seem that she's too happy about Gwen's interference with their gang. Gwen's not surprised, but she will find herself hating this girl.

I set out onto the outskirts of Akala, passing by the Memorial Hill. Trainers were waiting for others to come and battle them, but I didn't really feel like doing that right now. I was focused on getting to the Ruins of Life, to battle Olivia.

A guy in a martial arts uniform was practicing his moves, and I was certain that he was a Trainer as well. So I walked through the grass to avoid him.

Right after I stepped out of it, I saw two small tiki figures that served as a gateway to the said ruins, and I knew I was in the right place.

However, a woman stopped me before I could enter. She had tan skin, bright golden eyes. She had magenta color hair with two strands a golden yellow in the back, held up by skull-shaped ponytail holders. Black eyeshadow and white makeup were around her eyes, and a pink Team Skull tattoo was on her belly button. A skull pendant, tank top, baggy jeans, and sneakers finished off her look.

I groaned internally. I wasn't really wanting to come across another member of Team Skull, but here I was, face-to-face with one.

"So, you're the one Gladion was talking about? ...Hmph. You don't look like anything special to me."

That immediately struck a nerve. "Excuse me? What gives you the right to say that...?"

"Plumeria." she rested a hand on her hip briefly before approaching me. "I help keep Team Skull together. I'm like a big sister to all these numskulls. You have realized what idiots all these guys are, right?"

I didn't even bother to answer out loud. Sure, they were idiots, but-

"But don't you think some dummies are cute in their dumbness?"

"No-"

"You know, what I mean, right? You picking on my cute, dumb brothers and sister is really annoying me!"

"I'm not really picking on them, if that's what you think. But hey, go with it." I gritted my teeth, sending out my Torracat.

Plumeria sent out Golbat in return. It looked quite interesting, and different from its pre-evolution, Zubat.

I commanded Fira to use Bite, which had a powerful effect on the Golbat. I could see Plumeria growling in annoyance before she told her Golbat to use Confuse Ray.

Fira saw the ray come towards her, and couldn't tell what was going on. Her ears drooped down, and she looked baffled.

Oh shit...this isn't good. And I didn't have any berries or Full Heals that would dissolve her confusion.

I decided to switch her out with Rai.

Plumeria took advantage of this when he came out, and had her Golbat use Venoshock. Rai took a little bit of damage, but used Thunder Shock in response, meaning that he was alright...thank Arceus.

Her Golbat ended up hitting the ground, and she returned him to his Pokeball. She sent out Salandit, from what the Rotomdex told me it was. I remembered battling one of those at the Fire Trial.

I ordered Rai to use Magnet Bomb, since I didn't want to use up his Thunder Shock. It had a somewhat affective hit on the admin's Salandit, who used Flame Burst in return.

Rai nearly fainted from the attack, and was on one life. Crap...I didn't want to risk him fainting. So Kasumi it is.

I sent her out, and Plumeria had her Salandit use the same move again. It wasn't effective on my Psyduck.

I had Kasumi use Water Gun in return, and I nearly fist pumped the air when it landed a critical hit on the opposing Pokémon. Salandit ended up fainting, and Plumeria withdrew it to its Pokeball.

"Phooey." Plumeria frowned, handing me reward money. She soon tore her attention away from me. "Well, you're pretty strong. I'll give you that. But mess with anyone in Team Skull again, and you'll see how serious I can get."

Without any more words to say, she pivoted around, walking away from me. I merely stared at her.

I had to admit. I was a little scared of her words, since I could tell she was quite serious already by her attitude. But I was curious more than that.

I wondered what it would be like if I came across the Boss. Would she unleash her anger then? Perhaps she will, perhaps she won't.

But something about her made me quite vexed. Why were most of these members of Team Skull so rude?


	15. Olivia's Trial; A Much-Needed Rest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen completes her second Grand Trial and hears the Aether Foundation for the first time. Well, one of the people in it, that is.

Olivia looked up when she saw me approach the Ruins of Life. Lillie was next to her, looking around. Perhaps she might have been concerned where I was at.

"Hey, Olivia. Sorry I'm late." I rubbed the back of my neck. "I had to deal with a Team Skull member."

"Ah, Team Skull. I've heard of them. Their infamy has become quite known around Alola." the dark-skinned woman shook her head in disbelief of this. "I don't know how it started, but I do hope they're disbanded." her dark blue eyes widened when she heard Lillie mutter something about them. "Are you alright, Lillie?"

"I-I'm fine. It's just, the name sends chills down my spine." the platnium blonde gripped the handles of her bag tighter, and Nebby nudged her leg to comfort her a little. She smiled slightly.

I couldn't help but look at her in confusion. Something about her expression showed that she knew more than she was saying. Perhaps she knows that her brother is part of Team Skull?

"Gwen."

Olivia brought me out of my thoughts, and I smiled sheepishly. "Heh. Sorry about that."

"Ready?"

I nodded, and sent out Kasumi. Kukui had told me earlier that Olivia used Rock types, so I hoped this would be somewhat easy to do.

In return, the Akala Kahuna sent out a wolf-like Pokemon, with fierce fangs and a hunched back. Rotomdex told me that it was Lycanroc's Dusk Form. It was quite beautiful, but I needed to keep myself focused and not get distracted.

I commanded Kasumi to use Water Pulse, but Olivia had other plans in mind. The Z-Ring on her wrist glew, and she did quite an amazing form, ending it with her arms pumped out and her hips twisted. Lycanroc glew with a yellow aura, and he used his Z-Move.

I stepped back, watching as her Pokemon nearly sent mine into the ground. Kasumi was a little dazed, but alright. She was not on her last legs, which I was worried about. She had used the attack I commanded her to use earlier, and it caused a lot of damage for Lycanroc.

He went down, and Olivia switched him out with her Nosepass.

I bit my bottom lip, hoping this would work out well. I told Kasumi to use her Z-Move, Hydro Vortex. I copied the move Lana told me to do, which had taken me a little while to get memorized compared to the others prior.

Olivia's Nosepass was sent into a water tornado, and slammed down hard on the ground once it dissipated. It lost consciousness almost immediately, and Olivia put it back in her Pokeball.

I was honestly surprised that the Nosepass went down in one hit with that move, but I was proud of my Psyduck nonetheless.

"You did great, Gwen." Olivia smiled. "Kukui was right when he told me that you were a strong Trainer, despite your age."

"Thanks, Olivia." I returned the smile. "I know I'm older than the usual trial goer, but it feels nice! I honestly feel like a kid doing this!"

Olivia chuckled at this. "I know the feeling, back when I was a Trainer. Tapu Lele, the deity of Akala Island, had deemed me the Kahuna when I went into the Ruins of Life years ago. And I've been sticking to that title ever since."

"That's amazing. How old do you have to be a Kahuna?"

"No older than 20. Once you reach 21 and up, you can't become one. I heard that the boss of Team Skull wanted to do that, but he didn't get the chance."

"Oh." Well, then. I had a dream emerging in my head about becoming one, and it quickly diminished.

"Here's the Rocknium Z, by the way. You earned it." she stuck out her hand, and offered me the light brown Z-Crystal. I took it and put it in my handbag. She soon showed me the move to activate it, and Lillie looked impressed by how strong she was to do that. "Also, I forgot to mention this, but Kukui wants you to come to the Hano Resort in downtown HeaHea City, something about the Aether Foundation. I'll join you there in a few minutes."

"Okay. Thanks for letting me know." I gave her a wave before leaving, looking of my shoulder at Lillie. "Hey, Lillie. Are you coming to the foundation?"

"U-Um, no thanks, Gwen." she looked down at her white dress shoes in a timid manner. "I'll stay here with Professor Kukui."

"I understand. See you later." I gave her a quick hug before leaving the Ruins of Life, heading to the Hano Resort where Kukui wanted me to meet him.

I used Tauros Charge to get there faster, since my feet would kill me later on. I disabled it once I got to the resort, looking at it.

It was huge, with about five to six stories. The exterior was splashed with a light peach color, and the entrance had a red carpet leading to the doors. It felt relaxing to see.

I walked into the resort, immediately coming across the Professor there. I took a quick look at the interior of the resort, awed at how beautifully decorated it was. He had to snap his fingers to get my attention.

"You've been spacing out a lot, haven't you, cousin?" he laughed a bit when I nodded. "Well, I understand. You look exhausted. I wanted to tell about the Aether Foundation, but that can wait until later."

I smiled. "Thank you, Kukui. That means a lot." I was about to go to the front desk when something popped into my head. "Are the rooms expensive?"

"Not at all, but Mr.Faba has already paid the rooms for you and Hau."

I cocked an eyebrow. "Who's he?"

"You'll meet him tomorrow. Just get some rest and we'll head to the foundation as soon as possible."

"...Alright." I said my goodnights to him once I checked in at a room at the front desk. I combed my hair and got into a nightgown that was supplied in the closet. I was impressed that they had that out for the guests, and it put less stress on them for needing to bring suitcases of their own, I guess.

I put myself underneath the covers, and turned off the lamp. The light from the moon outside spilled into the room, barely providing light itself in the room.

However, I couldn't get to sleep right away. The thing about Team Skull was nagging at my mind, no matter how much I tried to shoo it from my mind. I had assumed that Lillie knew nothing about it, but it turned out that she did.

Why was she so nervous when I asked her about the foundation, and telling Olivia about battling Plumeria, one of the members? Was she trying to hide that she probably knew about her brother being part of it? What would their mother think of this...or worse, what if she already knew?

I exhaled, running my hands through my hazel brown locks. Lillie meant well, she really did. But something about her was setting me off. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, and it was really irritating me.

I knew, however, that if I thought about it for too long, I wouldn't get any sleep. So I closed my eyes, and drifted off.


	16. Shocking Visit to the Aether Foundation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen and Hau visit the Aether Foundation and can't help but wonder about the Ultra Beast she comes across. And also of Lusamine.

"Gwen! Rise and shine!"

I nearly cursed underneath my breath when I heard that high-pitched voice. I sat up in my bed, wondering who in the world that was.

"It's me, Hau! Kukui wants you to have some breakfast before we head to the foundation!"

My olive green eyes widened in realization. That's right! I had completely forgotten about that. I thanked Hau for letting me know and got ready.

I looked frantically in the closet for some new clothes, but couldn't find any. I had put my clothes from yesterday on the ends of the bed, and I really didn't want to wear them over again. But it looked like I had to do that. Whoop de doo.

After I was finished, I woke up my Pokemon and got them into their Pokeballs. They didn't like being woken up, either, but they had to, sadly.

I met up with my rival at the breakfast diner, and we ordered some pancakes with hazelnut spread on them. Hau looked disappointed that there was no malsadas he could order, but he was happy with the food overall. His bright smile was always heartwarming to see, knowing how innocent he was compared to the others.

Kukui called us to the front room of the place once we ate, and there, before us, was a tall man in a lab coat. He had a green collar and sleeves that contrasted with the white, somewhat unruly blonde hair, and a green visor over his eyes. The curly beard finished off his look.

I guessed this was Mr. Faba, the one Kukui mentioned earlier. Something about his appearance seemed fishy, and I didn't know why.

"Hello there, you two. I am Branch Manager Faba of the Aether Foundation. I assume that the professor here has told you about me, right?"

Hau and I both nodded.

"Good. I also want to thank you for your help fighting those Team Skull people. They are nothing but evil people that have been head to head with our foundation, which helps keep Pokemon safe and protected from people like them." he scoffed. "So in gratitude, I want to show you two around the Aether Foundation, if you would like that."

"Sure, that sounds great!" Hau blurted out before I could say anything, so I nodded in agreement to his words.

Faba simpered in response. "Well, then. Let's take the boat over there - ah! Mrs. Olivia. It is nice to see you."

We turned to see the dark-skinned female enter the resort, a hand placed on her hip. She smiled at us.

"Sorry for being late. I was busy at my store, and wasn't able to come here immediately like I said I would. I came to see you and Hau off."

I tried not to laugh that she completely ignored Faba's greeting. I couldn't blame her.

"All the trialgoers are like children to me, probably because I haven't been married and am not planning to." she laughed a little at what she said. "It's sad to see you go so soon, but I'm sure we'll meet again."

"Definitely." I smiled warmly, then locked my eyes on Kukui. "So, what island are we heading to next after the visit?"

"Ula Ula island. You'll love Malie City and its garden when we meet up there afterwards!"

"I'm sure we will." My heart raced a little bit with excitement, but I made sure to control it. I couldn't believe we were going to another island already.

The conversation died out quickly, and Faba soon escorted us to the boat.

o o o o o

It took hours to get to the Foundation, but we finally reached it. My eyes broadened at how big and purely white this place was. It was so breathtaking. Hau seemed to think the same thing, and he dashed inside before anyone could stop him.

I turned to see some people dressed in employee outfits conversing with Pokemon and petting them. The males had brown hair, silver eyes, and tan skin, while the female had darker skin and violet hair. It was quite interesting to see, and kind of reminded me of Team Sku-

Okay. I really need to get them out of my head. Hopefully, this would help.

We were sent to the triangle-shaped elevator by Faba, and a young woman with curly purple hair and a beautiful outfit approached us. She conversed with the man for a bit before he went off, leaving her to be our escort for the remainder of the tour. She introduced herself as Mrs.Wicke.

She was nicer comapred to that Faba guy, and a lot less fishy. She had asked us about our trials so far while we went past the docks and the Pokemon observatory. She had already known our names, which I found a bit creepy.

Mrs.Wicke had giggled when Hau told her how long he had been a Trainer for, since he was eleven, inspired by Hala himself. So I assumed for him to be around twelve or fourteen.

She had asked me what age I was, since she wasn't sure, so I told her I was twenty-one. Wicke had a slight look of surprise on her face before returning back to her calm smile.

We continued onto the very first floor of the place, passing by the lab doors in the process. I looked around the place, seeing all the greenery and the walkways, as well as the glass dome above us. I was starting to feel a little dizzy from all the different places to walk, but I kept my balance.

Wicke walked away from us when a tall woman with very long, platnium blonde hair approached us, introducing herself as Lusamine. I took in her outlook.

It was a long dress with a emerald green diamond in the middle, matching her eye color. It was black in some parts, especially at the heels of her outfit.

She smiled as a greeting, welcoming us to the Aether Foundation. She explained what the place was about, not mentioning Team Skull in the slightest. I was relieved about that.

Hau looked surprised at how young Lusamine looked, and she merely giggled at that, telling him that she was over forty years old. He looked fine with it for a moment, then stepped back in surprise. "H-How?!" he soon regained himself. "Well, you do great with the looks, miss. Lillie does well with those, too."

The lady's eyes went from calming to glaring in an instant, and looked away, mumbling something about children needing to do what they're told. It clicked on me that she was indeed the mother of Lillie and Gladion. I knew it!

However, she went back to that calm exterior of hers. She showed us through the place. The ground suddenly rumbled, catching our attention.

We all turned to see a white crack in front of us, flowing lightly. It suddenly cracked open, revealing a dull rainbow color. All of us just stared at it in utter shock, not knowing what was going on.

Something flew out of the wormhole, and I couldn't believe my eyes. It looked like a jellyfish, but with no eyes whatsoever...and no completely body. It...It looked like Lillie without all the exterior details.

What the hell was this thing?

Lusamine gazed at its peculiar beauty. "Oh, your poor thing. You're wanting a place to hide...don't you? From the place where you've been hurt?"

The strange creature shivered in response. 

I didn't know what to do. Before I knew it, my feet were taking me forward. I had no clue what was going on with them. I was just as taken aback by this thing like the President of the Aether Foundation was.

I sent out Fira, and she meowed in response when her paws hit the ground. I commanded her to use Flame Charge, which wasn't really that effective on the opposing Pokémon. Rotomdex tried to identify it, but had no luck. I was surprised, to say the least.

It used Rock Throw in return, nearly taking out the Torracat in one hit. Growling underneath my breath, I switched Fira out with Kasumi.

The Pokémon attempted to use Venoshock on Kasumi, but she dodged it, using Psychic in return. It took quite a bit of damage from the attack.

I used it again on the Pokémon, and it lost consciousness for a slight moment. It soon escaped from all of us, twisting the space around it before everything in front of it went back to normal.

I glanced over at Luasmine, assuming that she was hurt at me fighting the Pokémon, not to mention using a Pokeball in the place when it was restricted not to do so.

She didn't have that look at all, however. She had one that was more...sinister. The pupils in her eyes had become smaller. The forty plus year old stretched out her arms, saying something about finding out more about that Pokémon, for her own use...whatever that was.

She cleared her throat afterwards, pretending that personality shift didn't happen. The tour was already over, anyways, so we were escorted out of the Foundation.

Hau took notice of the color that had drained out of my face from that woman's expression. "Hey, Gwen, you okay? You don't look so good."

My olive green eyes rested on his, and I shook my head. I rested my palm on my forehead afterwards, suddenly feeling lightheaded. "I-I'm fine, Hau. I'm just trying to recollect in my head about what just happened back there."

"Yeah, me too. I don't know why that lady switched her attitude like that, but it is indeed scary." he exhaled, folding his hands together before putting them on the back of his neck. "I don't think it's much to worry about, though. Perhaps the ship ride to Ula Ula Island might help."

The color slowly returned back to my face. "...Perhaps it might."

We walked in silence towards the ship, getting in the seats closest to the window. Once I had seated myself, I started feeling a lot better. Hearing Hau go on about the new island and receiving two Big Malsadas added to that.

He offered the second one to me, and I gladly took it. My mind went back to the whole Lusamine incident, and I wondered what type of twisted mind she had.

Was this why Lillie and Gladion were gone from the Foundation...or was it more than I thought it was?


	17. Readings and an Electrifying Trial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen and Hau return from the Foundation and are on Ula Ula Island. It doesn't take long for a young purple-haired girl to socialize with her and Lillie and to complete the Electric Trial. And for Team Skull to be on Gwen's case again, as always.
> 
> Little does she know who she's going to meet...
> 
> (Stark Baum (mentioned) belongs to my friend, -jaffxa, on Wattpad)

It didn't take long for us to reach Ula Ula island. Hau, per usual, jumped off of the ship, hitting his feet hard on the ground. 

I shook my head with a smile on my lips. Hau told me that he was going to head to Malie Garden. I told him I'll meet him there once I healed my Pokémon.

I walked up the small set of stairs to the city, taking in the oriental design it had. It reminded me a lot of Heahea City yesterday, and I assumed one or both of them got inspired by the Kanto regions' buildings a long time ago.

I stepped into the Pokemon Center, letting the nurse heal my Pokemon for a moment. I thanked her and exited the place, walking ahead.

I was just about to pass by the garden when Hau waved me over, getting my attention. I took in the place, seeing the golden bridge and the decorations in the same color. It was beautiful.

We searched everywhere for Kukui, eventually finding him at one of the meditation tables in the far right corner of the garden. He seemed pretty relaxed, and Hau and I had to snap our fingers to get him out of his trance.

"Oh! Whoa, sorry about that." he laughed. "I tend to do that when I mediate. It's relaxing, yeah." he cleared his throat. "Anyways, how did the visit go?"

The sea-green haired kid took turns with me explaining it, about this Pokemon that Lusamine informed us was something ultra. I hadn't caught the last part.

"Wow! That does sound interesting! I wish I could've been there." the professor got up, stretching.

Trust me, Kukui. You wouldn't have wanted to be there.

"Anyways, you guys can take a look around the place." he locked his eyes on me. "Do you want to take a look at Mount Hokulani later?"

"Sure, I would love that. What is there for us to see?"

"Well, there's the observatory, and something else I would like to show you there. I think you'll like it! See you later, cousin."

I said my goodbyes to him, and let Hau converse with him while I left the garden. I nearly scared myself when I saw Lillie right around the corner.

"J-Jeez, Lillie! It's...it's,er, nice to see you again." I had to calm my heart down before I voiced my words.

"It's nice to see you again, too, Gwen." she wore a shy smile on her lips, before it melted into a frown. "I-I'm thinking of going to the library, but I'm afriad I might get lost again like I did before. I don't want to end up like I did when Professor Brunett found me."

"Don't worry, Lillie. I'll walk with you to the library. I take it you want to read up on anything that might pertain to Nebby?"

She nodded, her smile returning. "Yeah, that would be nice. Thanks."

"No problem. Let's head on over there."

We turned many corners to get to the library, and I glimpsed at some of the buildings. Just like the other cities, this one had a salon and apparel shop. I saw someone with shoulder-length gray hair and thick eyebrows pass by us, and I could've sworn he looked like that Professor Oak I've heard about. But I quickly dimissed that.

"H-Here it is."

I looked to see a small, white building with pillars as decorations at the entrance. We walked inside, and I observed all of the books on the shelves. I glimpsed out of the corner of my eye to see Lillie's hair bounce up and down, meaning that she had gone upstairs. Wondering why she went up there, I followed her.

She was looking at all of the books, running her fingertips across them to find the right one. She let out a light sigh of frustration. That is, until a young girl with short lavender hair and a patched dress approached us.

"Well, hello! Are you looking for a book on beasts, perhaps?"

Lillie turned to face her, and nodded. "Y-Yes, I am."

"Okay. I'll find it for you."

Lillie bowed slightly in gratitude and seated herself at one of the tables. I took the seat in front of her, and we waited for the girl to come back with the book.

She came to our table, setting it down and turning to the page about the beasts.

Lillie read it out loud, and I leaned in with curiosity.

Apparently, an Ultra Beast by the name of Solgaleo had attacked the people of the Alola region when it came out of the wormhole. One story had lead after another, and Solgaleo had come to be nicer to the people in Alola. A shrine was even given to it in its honor, and it only be summoned by two flutes - a Sun and a Moon flute.

However, no one had heard of it again to this day. That was quite interesting.

Come to think of it, that thing that I saw earlier must have been from that same place Solgaleo had come from. But why? Why would it have wanted to come here, or worse...attack the place?

The lavender-haired girl got me out of my thoughts when she had questioned us about the book.

"It's really peculiar, but quite intriquing." I told her, smiling. "Thanks for finding this for us...?"

"Acerola. I'm one of the trial Captains here. My uncle had made that book there, talking about the Ultra Beasts. It may not look like it, but we used to be royalty." she formed her lips into that of a cat's, which was quite adorable. "What's your name?"

"Gwendolyn, but feel free to call me Gwen. This is Lillie." I nodded to Lillie, and blushed from me mentioning her.

"Nice to meet you both. I take it you're a trialgoer by the amulet on your wrist. You seem older than the ones I've taken on before. You...you kind of remind me of that guy, Stark. Have you heard of him?"

My eyebrows furrowed at this. "No...why do you ask?"

"I've just heard of him and Team Reaper around a lot, that's all. But don't worry, they're not of this region." Acerola rested her hands on her hips. "Anyways, I'm glad I could be of help for you guys. Need anything else?"

"No, but thanks for the offer." I glanced at Lillie, seeing that she was finished looking as well. "We'll be making our leave now."

"Alright. Oh, and just to let you know, come to my Ghost Trial later, near the abandoned market. See you there!"

I nodded in return, and Lillie and I exited the building. Lillie informed me that she was going to explore the city a little bit.

I said my goodbyes to her, and looked around. Kukui told me that the way to the observatory would be the bus. So the bus stop should be here somewhere.

As if on cue, Rotomdex flew out of my handbag, telling me where the bus stop was. He didn't bother to go back in, so he followed me up the road to the said place.

"Let's hope that we don't come across more of those Team Skull people, zzt. They're quite annoying."

"I have to agree with you there." I exhaled, delving my hands into the front pockets of my jeans. "I can't fathom why they like to cause trouble and attempt to steal people's Pokemon."

"Yeah, it's ssssad. Perhaps they ran away from home, and are trying to survive?"

"Oh, I doubt it. I really do." I bit my tounge slightly, hoping I wouldn't prove myself wrong later...because when I start doubting stuff, that tends to happen.

Rotomdex went back to my handbag when I reached the bus stop.

There, I saw two of the blue-haired male grunts of the said team. They were discussing whether to steal the bus stop or not. I wasn't having any of this.

"Hey, you numskulls! Don't even think of stealing that bus stop."

They turned to see me, eyes widened for a brief moment. They started doing their rap moves.

"Yo, it's not right to get after us for that!" the first one spoke.

"Yeah! We were here first, and the bus stop is ours! You'll have to get through us to get it back!"

I exhaled, and threw my Psyduck out. The first Grunt sent his Raticate out in return, and a knot formed in my throat.

I quickly switched her out, and sent out Fira instead.

His Raticate used Bite on Fira, but it wasn't really that effective.

I commanded her to use Brick Break, which is what I taught her through a TM earlier, and watched her hit the Raticate right on the face with her paws, bouncing off of him and landing on her paws.

He ended up fainting, and the grunt withdrew him back to his Pokeball. He gave me money as a reward, complaining how I was able to beat him so easily.

He and his friend took one step back afterwards, leaving the area.

"Wow. That was amazing, Gwen. You really showed them!"

I looked over my shoulder to see Kukui approaching me. Turning my whole body around, I smiled, resting my hands on my hips. "Thanks, Kukui. I had to show them not to mess with the bus stops. It seems that they would take anything just for themselves."

"Yeah, that's unfortunately true, cousin." he sighed. "Anyways, let's head to Mountain Hokulani and meet the Captain there."

It was only an almost thirty minute drive there. The cold wind was biting at our faces when we reached the top. I was wondering why Kukui didn't even bother to bring coats for us, especially for himself. Being shirtless in cold weather wasn't really a good idea...

Someone with short brown hair and a white tip at the tuft of it greeted us with a wide smile. He introduced himself as Molayne, the Captain's cousin. He had hinted about the Masked Royal to Kukui, and Kukui acted like he had no clue what he was talking about.

I had to stifle a laugh, since it's pretty obvious he's the Masked Royal.

Molayne adjusted his glasses, locking his eyes on mine. "So this is the Trainer you've been telling me about? She seems older than the usual trial goers."

"Yeah, I've heard that a lot." I put on a knowing smile, but to be honest, it was getting quite of annoying. "But don't let my age fool you."

"I take that as a battle, then. I would like to see if what Kukui said about you was true."

He sent out his Skyamory, which was easy to tell by the metal exterior it had.

In return, I sent out Fira out. I commanded her to use Ember, which had a powerful effect on his Pokémon. However, the Skyamory was standing barely on its last legs, and I cursed underneath my breath.

I had forgotten that some of those Pokémon had the Sturdy ability, meaning their health could be hanging on a thread, and they would still be standing up.

I told my Torracat to use Flame Burst - which she had learned earlier, on the Skyamory, and it hit him down. Molyane returned it him back to its Pokeball, and sent out a strange looking Pokémon.

Rotomdex had quickly scanned it as Metang, a Steel and Pyschic type. Hm. That was a good thing, since Fira was a Fire and Dark type.

I told Fira to use Bite, which the Metang took a strong hit from.

It used Steel Cannon in return, which the cat Pokémon missed just barely. She used the same move again, and landed a critical hit.

Metang fainted, and Molayne put him back in his Pokeball, sending out...Dugtrio?

I could tell what Pokémon it was, since it was in Unova. But what was with the blond hair?

The brown-haired man took notice of my expression. "It's an Alolan Dugtrio. It's a Steel and Ground type." he laughed slightly. "I can see why it can be confusing."

"Oh." I actually wanted to say "Oh,shit", but that would be awkward. I immediately switched Fira out with Kasumi.

His Dugtrio used Earthquake upon Kasumi landing, and she took a bit of damage from it. I didn't want to risk her getting hurt after using Water Pulse or Water Gun, so I activated my Z-Ring.

The familiar yellow aura surrounded my Psyduck when I finished posing, and watched Dugtrio get sent into a vortex of water. He fainted, and Molayne took him out of the battle.

"So Kukui was right about you being strong." he handed me some reward money. "Your Pokémon are amazing, Gwen."

"Thanks-" I went to tell him, but something bright cut me off. I turned to see Kasumi engulfed in white, soon changing form. She was slightly taller and thinner than she was before, and had a completely different color palette. She was a light blue, with crimson eyes and a red jewel on her forehead. She quacked loudly.

"Well, it seems that your Golduck agrees with you, cousin!" Kukui laughed, and Molayne joined in. I eventually added into the laughter as well, patting Kasumi's head.

I was surprised that she had evolved so soon. But then, I remembered that she was already a little strong when I first caught her after Lana's trial.

Molayne went into the observatory afterwards, and Kukui called my name, telling me to come over to where he was.

I walked over to where he was standing, and saw that he was looking a very a tall mountain, peeking out of the clouds.

"Whoa..." I was in awe at it. "What is this?"

"It's Lanakila Mountain, the tallest in Alola! It's breathtaking, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it really is."

"I'm thinking of making a Pokémon League there in the near future, since Alola hasn't had one at all. That way, trainers who do all of their trials and come here can face the first ever Alolan Champion, and so on and so forth! Doesn't that sound exciting, cousin?"

I nodded, smiling widely. "I think it's a great idea. How long will it take to make?"

"Oh, quite a few months. It'll be big." he stepped away from the view, and I followed suit. "That aside, I'm heading back to Malie City. Meet up with me at Malie Garden, yeah?"

"Alright." I waved to him before setting foot into the observatory. The doors slid open automatically, and the same went for the next set. The observatory was quite big, but I was taken aback to find out that the lab itself was on the first floor.

There, before me, was a small kid with a round body. He had curly orange hair and freckles splashed on the cheeks of his face. He had a Pikachu scarf wrapped around his neck. He introduced himself as Sophocles, the Captain.

My olive green eyes widened at this. He was quite young to be a Captain, and he seemed to take notice that I was thinking that.

"Yeah, I know. Something got mixed up, and I ended up becoming Captain. My cousin, Molayne, used to be the Captain. How did it go with him?"

"It went well. He was surprised, though."

The kid laughed. "It's not every day that he gets beat by a woman close to his age. Same with having one do my trial." he blushed awkwardly. "I didn't mean to sound rude."

"It's alright, Sophocles. So when's the trial-"

Before I could finish my sentence, the lights went out completely, putting us in darkness. I couldn't see a thing!

Sophocles groaned. "I must have done something wrong again! ...I guess we would have to do the trial now, and see if this helps."

He instructed me to follow three sounds, and tell them what it was. I answered two of them correctly, and fought two of the small, bus like Pokémon known as Charjbug. I got the third one around, accidentally causing Sophocles to get shocked. I got another try, and got it right, fighting another Charjbug.

Finally, we had gotten to the last question. I could hear the doors open when I had answered the previous ones, and I suspected that the final door would open after this.

I got the last question right, and jumped when a large shock came in between Sophocles and me.

A large Pokémon with wings had been approaching us this whole time, and Sophocles could tell what the Pokémon was right away.

"That's the Totem Pokémon of this observatory, Vikavolt! Good luck!"

A knot formed in my throat at this, and I sent out Fira, hoping this would work out well.

The Vikavolt had an aura engulf it right when I did that. My heart raced fast, feeling this Pokémon would be difficult compared to the other ones.

I told Fira to use Flame Burst, landing a hit on the Vikavolt. It started charging up, and summoned its ally Pokémon afterwards.

Three seconds passed by, and a Charjbug had appeared. I bit my bottom lip. This was going to be a little difficult. I had to do something. Think, Gwen, think!

My eyes traced down my arm, resting on my Z-Ring. I simpered, an idea forming in my head.

I performed the move for the Firium Z, seeing Fira get engulfed by the yellow aura. A huge fire ball formed in front of her, and she sent it right towards Vikavolt, watching the flames hit its body.

She returned, steadying her breath. Vikavolt was barely managing to fly now, which was a good thing in this case. He would be healed later on, since I didn't really want this Pokémon to get hurt so bad to the point that he could possibly-

No, I shouldn't be thinking that right now. I need to focus!

Vikavolt had finished his charging, and sent a strong flash of light towards Fira. It was a critical hit, and she nearly fainted from it. Shit!

I switched her out with my Trumbeak, Shiro. The Charjbug attempted to use the same move on her, but she dodged it.

I commanded her to use Peck on Vikavolt, and it landed a critical hit. The Totem Pokémon fell to the ground, and fainted upon impact. Now the Charjbug was the only thing there.

The Charjbug used String Shot this time, wrapping the bird Pokémon in a spider-like string. She fought to get out of it, eventually breaking free. But unfortunately, I could see her speed get decreased a little, due to one part of the string getting stuck on her right leg.

She attempted to use Peck this time, but it missed completely. Charjbug used Spark, and Shiro barely missed it.

She used Peck again, thankfully landing a hit on it this time. It went down, fainting on the spot.

I let out a long whoosh of air, relieved that the trial was finally over. The lights flickered back on, and I could see that Sophocles was a bit nervous. He even stated it.

"This was my first time doing the trial. So, uh, congratulations? You beat the trial." he handed me the Electrium Z, and I thanked him. He blushed from the compliment.

Molyane congratulated me as well, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. Since when did he get here?!

He handed me the Steelium Z, and I nodded in gratitude.

"Oh, and can you give this to Kukui? He left it here." he rummaged inside one of the large pockets of his jacket, handing me a colorful mask. "I'm sure he'll be quite grateful about it."

"I'll make sure to." I grinned. "Isn't it funny how he thinks that we don't know who he is the Masked Royal?"

"Yeah, it is!" Molayne laughed. "It's as clear as a sunny day."

"Definitely. Anyways, I'll be heading back to Malie City. Good luck with the trials onward, Sophocles."

I headed off afterwards, taking the bus back. I partially ran to Malie Garden, only to see Professor Kukui talking to two Team Skull Grunts.

...What was going on here?


	18. Heated Encounter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen finally meets the boss behind the infamous gang. You can probably guess what she'll think of him. And him of her.

I approached Kukui, asking him what had happened.

"I was on my way back here when these two grunts stopped me from meditating again over there." he exhaled. "I take it you'll take care of them, cousin?"

"Of course. It's quite annoying when they appear everywhere you go. But before I battle them, here's the mask you left at the Battle Royal."

Kukui's eyebrows furrowed at this, and he thanked me. He opened his mouth to add something, but someone cut him off.

"Battle Royal, huh? Nice idea there, Kukui. You can beat down three Pokémon at once?"

We turned to see the two grunts step aside, revealing a fairly tall man with curly white hair, sun and moon designed sunglasses on them. He had tan skin, grey eyes, and dark bags underneath. He donned on a jacket with zig-zags on the sleeves, and a purple tattoo of his gang's logo on his arm. The baggy pants and sneakers matched with it. The large golden Team Skull pendant around his neck swung back and forth when he approached the Professor.

"Heh. The hated boss who beats you down, and beats you down...and never gives up...yeah. Big Bad Guzma is here!" he let out a loud laugh, expecting someone to hear.

...To be honest, I found it really annoying.

He soon exhaled, resting his eyes on Kukui. "So here we are, Kukui...two Trainers who weren't able to become Captains. I'm surprised you even became a Professor."

My eyebrows twitched in vexation at this. I have only known the Professor for two days, but nobody should be making fun of him. I had to do something.

"Hey! You have no right to talk like that to him!" I clenched my fists, and Kukui immediately stepped aside. I was now face-to-face with Guzma himself. "He works hard. I've seen that!"

Guzma merely chuckled at this. "Of course you have." his eyes rested on the Z-Ring on my wrist. "So you have a Z-Ring? You don't look all like Hala's grandson."

"That's because I'm not his grandson! I'm a grown woman doing the trials."

"I see that. But do you know what you're in for with these trials, lady?"

"I don't know yet." I was struggling not to punch this guy.

"Well, I expected as much." he shrugged. "...You seem like one that doesn't step down, no matter how many times you get defeated."

"Of course." I crossed my arms. "It seems that you've been defeated many times yourself, Mr. Tough Guy."

Grunts that heard this yelled "Oh!" in response, and Guzma's eyes broadened at what I just said. He yelled at them to shut up, and I could hear the anger in his voice.

This was getting good.

"Don't you dare call me that-"

"Gwen."

"And don't you dare interrupt me either, Gwen." he spoke my name venomously. "That really pisses me off. As I was saying, you seem like a spunky person. Those scars of yours seem to prove that."

My eyes immediately locked on the scars on my arms, and I hid my arms away from him. Tears pricked at my eyes, and I gritted my teeth. "You don't know a thing about these scars!"

He took a step closer, and I took a step back. He was getting too close, and he knew that he was trying to intensify my anger.

"Oh, but I do. You're dealing with destruction in its human form, darling."

I cocked an eyebrow. "I'd rather beat destruction's ass than deal with someone as annoying as you."

This seemed to hit a nerve with him. He smiled, his eyes wide and an eyebrow twitched. "That does it! Get ready to face me, or suffer the consequences."

I reached for Fira's Pokeball from the belt that I had bought a while back, but had forgotten about, to help hold them. My fingers were an inch from it when Kukui rested a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

"Hey, Gwen. Don't let your anger get to you. Just show that guy a thing or two, yeah?"

I gave him a warm smile. "Thanks for that, Kukui." I grabbed Fira's Pokeball once the professor stepped aside, and I sent her out.

Guzma sent his tall, bug-like Pokémon out in return. Rotomdex identified it as Golispod, but was unsure of what its type, or types, were.

I told Fira to use Flame Burst, hoping that would work. However, Guzma's Golispod beat me to it, using Razor Shell.

In one hit, Fira went down, and I had to send her back to her Pokeball. Something inside me snapped.

It was one thing to have Fira faint in a regular battle. But to have her faint at the hands of an infamous gang's boss?

Oh hell no. I wasn't having it.

I switched her out for Rai. Guzma's Golispod attempted to use Razor Shell again, but he dodged it.

I activated Rai's Z-Move with my ring, letting the Electrium Z come to life. I attempted to try what Sophocles showed me the best I could.

Rai's body lit up entirely, and in the blink of an eye, he hit right into Golispod. The large Pokémon went down in one hit, thank Arceus, and Guzma returned him back to his Ultra Ball.

He sent out his next Pokémon, Ariados. It took a moment to recognize it, since I hadn't seen one in a while.

I congratulated Rai on his hard work before transferring him out with Shiro.

Guzma's Ariados managed to use String Shot on Shiro, but she dodged it. I took it that she didn't want to be slowed down like she was in the Electric Trial not that long ago.

She used Wing Attack in return, and Ariados went down in one hit, since the move was super effective against his type.

Surprisingly, that was the last Pokémon Guzma had. He growled as he returned Ariados to its Ultra Ball.

Three seconds passed by before he suddenly lost it, gripping his white locks with his hair.

"What's wrong with you, Guzma?! You let this annoying woman, who's close to your age, take you down like that! You're nothing but a disgrace!"

He calmed himself down by drawing in a breath, cracking his knuckles. He pointed his finger at me, jabbing it near the collar bone.

"...I'll admit it. You did great for a Trainer your age." his eyes stared deep in my olive green ones. "But if we ever meet again, I'll beat you. I'll make sure of it."

He walked past me, hitting right into my shoulder as he did so. The grunts started following him, and I could see the Team Skull logo embedded on his jacket.

"I hope we never meet again."

"Whatever." he stuck his hands in his pockets.

When he was out of our sight, Kukui looked at me.

"Wow. You handled that pretty well, Gwen."

"Thanks." my reply had come out cold, and the professor's eyes widened. When I noticed that, my expression softened, and I buried my face into my hands. "...Sorry, Kukui. It's just that...that man really knows how to get on my nerves."

"He sure does." Kukui rested his hands on his hips, and he studied my face. "Say, I noticed that your expression completely changed when he mentioned the scars on your arms. What are those from?"

I bit my bottom lip. The tears were starting to form back in my eyes, nearly making them glassy. I hated how this always happened when someone mentioned the scars. My mind instantly relived the memories of what my parents did to me, and it hurt. It really hurt.

"Look, if you don't want to talk about it, it's alright, cousin." he gave me a reassuring smile. "You're free to tell me when you're ready."

"Thanks, Kukui." I smiled, and we both went to leave the garden.

We had just taken a few steps when the professor stopped, turning to face me. "Oh, I almost forgot to give you something really important. The Z-Crystal for Incineroar, the evolution of Litten you chose!"

He handed the Z-Crystal to me, and I observed it. "Whoa...this is beautiful. What does Incieroar look like?"

"You'll find that out when your little Fira evolves into that later on. You're going to love the final evolution, Gwen." he shrugged afterwards, going off of that subject. "Anyways, where is Lillie? Have you lost her?"

My eyes widened, and I nearly cursed out loud. The said platinum blonde's voice caused us to turn around.

She was approaching us, with Acerola next to her.

'Hau is probably at a malsada shop somewhere, yeah?" Kukui smiled knowingly.

Lillie blushed slightly, laughing a bit. I joined for a moment. "Knowing him, he definitely is."

"Oh, I forgot to ask you this, Gwen." Acerola locked her eyes on mine. "You defeated Sophocles' trial, right?"

"That I did."

"Well, the next one is on Route 11. It's the market I mentioned earlier, near Tapu Village. If you're lost, feel free to ask a police officer." she turned to face Lillie this time. "Now, Lillie, you and I are doing some shopping!"

We watched as the two girls left, and I said my goodbyes to Kukui for now. I had to do some shopping myself, honestly.

Hopefully, that'll get my mind off of Guzma.


	19. Small Breaks and Talks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen decides to take some time off from the trials and Guzma by going home. She fails when she lets her thoughts about him get to her.

A few days had passed since I had encountered Guzma. I hadn't done Acerola's trial yet since I really didn't feel up to it at the moment, and I hoped that the girl wouldn't be mad at me for that.

...Also, even though the trials were fun, they really took a lot of energy out of me, and the same went for my Pokémon. I wanted to give them a break as well, especially for Rai...who had evolved into Magneton when I trained him earlier.

Right now, I was laying down on my bed in Iki Town, visiting Ronnie until later on. My hair was going out in all directions.

Suddenly, my phone rang, and I sat up, taking it out of my shorts pocket. The phone told me it was an unknown number, but I could tell who it was.

It was Katherine. Oh thank Arceus.

I picked it up, accidentally saying that sentence out loud.

"Gwen! Long time, no talk!" my redheaded friend didn't seem to even take notice of what I just said. "How've you been since moving to Alola?"

"Great, actually! A lot of things have happened in the past two days." my mood immediately brightened up by her voice. "Do you want me to tell you?"

"Of course! I'm all ears, Gwen."

I told her of the start of my first ever Pokémon journey, meeting my Litten, Fira, who had evolved into a Torracat. The trials took a while to discuss with her. I ended with the Aether Foundation and encountering Team Skull and its grunts.

"That sounds amazing! I'm proud of you becoming a Trainer." that tone was evident through her words. "And this Aether Foundation you mentioned, I haven't heard much about them here on the news. But I have heard of Team Skull and Guzma."

If I had water with me, I would've spit it out in shock. "Y-You have?"

"Yeah. To be honest, they sound a lot more dangerous than Team Plasma does. Team Plasma was only wanting Kyruem for their own use, as well as Reshiram. But this team only focuses on stealing Pokémon, and selling them for profit...just to survive."

Shit. Looks like my doubting was right.

"But why?" I wondered.

"I figured they ran away from home, and since they don't have that much money anyways, they would have to resort to doing that. I wonder what caused them to do that in the first place, huh?"

"...Yeah."

"Anyways, about this Guzma guy. He seems cute."

My eyebrows twitched. "No, he's not! Don't let his looks deceive you, Katherine! He's actually quite rude."

"Oh, he is? What did he do?"

"Well, he noticed that I was a trialgoer, older than the usual kid...and started throwing insults. So I threw them right back at him, and that really got him angry. I really hope that I don't see that face of his again."

"Yeah, I hope you don't, either. Forget what I said about him being cute. If he's rude to my best friend, then he's not like that in the slightest. ...Also, I just realized that I shouldn't have said that, since I'm dating Curt- I mean, Christoph."

"The Pokémon Performer? That's amazing. When did that happen?"

"A little bit after I became Champion. We had been talking to each other a lot through my Xtransciever, ever since I found his. It took us a while to finally meet, and I was slowly falling for him. You should've seen his face when he accidentally picked up his a while later in his performer outfit. He was so embarrassed!"

I joined in with her laughter at the end. "That is embarrassing. But I'm happy for you, Kath. I really am."

"Thanks. ...Also, about this rude Guzma guy, there's something about him that seems off."

"What do you mean?"

Silence was on her line, and I was getting worried.

"...I don't know, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Perhaps if you two do happen to cross paths unfortunately, then it might click."

"Yeah, you have a point there." I could hear Ronnie calling me from the kitchen. "I have to go now, Kath. Talk to you later!"

"Alright. Ciao!"

We both hung up, and I walked out of my room to meet up with my mother.

"What is it?" I questioned her, seeing the tense look on her face. It was too late to have lunch, which was obvious by the lack of dishes and utensils out.

"You were talking to Katherine?"

I nodded slowly. "Yeah. Is something wrong?"

"Well, I apologize for this, but I was eavesdropping on your conversation, Gwen. You had mentioned Team Skull, and I immediately tensed up."

"Oh." That made a lot of sense, and I didn't blame her for listening in. "Mom, I'm sorry for encountering them. They have been showing up left and right since I started my journ-"

"I had expected that. I've heard a lot of bad things about them since we moved here, Gwen. I'm sorry for not telling you about them sooner, and that you've had to encounter them...including Guzma of all people."

"It's alright, Mom, really. You don't have to blame yourself for not letting me know beforehand. You were trying to protect me."

This softened my mother's tense expression quite a bit. She tucked a strand of her dark magenta hair behind her ear. "You have a point there." she exhaled. "...I guess that I've been protective of you for so long, even into your adult years. You're old enough to protect yourself, and I should've known that for a while now. You can fight against this gang, Gwen. You've got that fire-like passion inside of you."

"Thanks, Mom." I pulled her into a hug, and she accepted it. We stayed like that for a while until I pulled away. "Oh, and I forgot to ask. How old is this Guzma guy?"

"The news said that he was around twenty-three and twenty-four years old. So he's only two to three years older than you."

My eyes broadened. I honestly thought he was in his thirties. Jeez. "...Okay then. That's quite surprising."

"It is. I'm surprised that he's doing this of all things, considering he's an adult."

"True. I thought he would know better than that-"

Fira suddenly popped out of her Pokeball, and nuzzled against my legs. I smiled, bending down to pet her.

"I understand that you're worried about me and Mom, girl. It's alright."

"Mew." her ears twitched, and she soon nodded to the front door. I knew what that meant.

"You want a walk? Come on, let's go." We headed to the said door. My fingers were an inch from it when I turned to look at Ronnie. "Oh, and Mom. I'm going to be heading back to Ula'ula Island in a few hours."

"Alright. Do you want a snack before you go?"

My stomach rumbled, answering that for her. My face flushed. "Yeah, that would be nice."

I waved to her before leaving with Fira, walking down the path of Iki Town to the Hau'oli outskirts. I let out my other Pokémon as well, including my Golbat, Guzma.

I had realized that I named him after the boss without noticing, and it angered me that I did that. Not on my Pokémon, but the Team Skull Boss himself. But there was no turning back on that now-

Shit. Why does he always get in my head?! I swear, he's really getting annoying. That's why I agreed to walk with Fira in the first place. To get him out of my head!

I let my mind wander while Fira and I walked, jogging off and on to see who could race the fastest. I greeted people walking by as I did so. After an hour had passed, I returned home, and spent time with Ronnie.

Once it hit evening, I hugged Ronnie goodbye and stepped outside, feeling the calm air around the town. I summoned my Ride Pager, and out came Charizard. I got onto him, directed him where to go.

The wind bit at my face while Charizard took me to Ula'ula Island. I could feel the tension about Guzma and Team Skull slowly dissolve from my mind.

...I couldn't help but silently agree with what Katherine had said, though. Something about Guzma was indeed off, especially how he reacted when I defeated him.

But the attitude he had towards me had quickly clouded that. I hated his guts...and I always will.

Nothing would change that.


	20. Surprising and Spooky Stuff, Rising Trouble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen returns to Ula Ula to do her trial with Acerola. Fate seems to pull her towards the path of Gladion and Plumeria again. And Cosmog, which the gang seems to know about.

I landed down near the Pokémon Center, and patted Charizard on the head before he flew off. I looked around to see where Acerola was, but I couldn't find her. Raising an eyebrow, I headed down Route 12, which is where the Rotomdex was directing me to go.

A female trial coordinator saw me approach, and checked to see if I had passed the trial prior. I presented her the Electrium Z, and she opened the gates to let me through. I was about to pass by when someone familiar called my name.

I turned to see Hapu, waving to me with her Mudsdale by her side.

"I had meant to put Mudsdale on your Ride Page earlier. I was taken aback by how pretty Lillie looked that it slipped my mind." she took the said device for me, soon putting her Mudsdale on there. "You'll need it for the road ahead, partner."

I looked behind me to see the rocky terrains before us, and I smiled nervously. "Thanks, Hapu. That really means a lot."

"It's my pleasure. See you later."

I waved to her as she left, then activated Mudsdale on the Ride Pager. Before I knew it, I was on the Pokémon, dressed in safety gear. We went over the terrains, even though it was a bit bumpy. I had to make sure to hold onto her the whole time.

We eventually got down to the end of the route, avoiding any Trainers that were there. When it came to trials, I wanted my Pokémon to be healthy without risking them getting hurt in the first place.

I got off of Mudsale, deactivating her. I was back in my original clothes, and saw a motel in sight. Confused, I went to head towards it.

Hau saw me there, and immediately headed over.

"Hey, Gwen! Where've you been?"

I turned to see him, and smiled. "Hey, Hau. I took a break from trials for a little bit after battling the Team Skull boss."

"Oh." he noticed the annoyed expression I had. "I take it you had a rocky encounter with him?"

"Yeah, I did." I exhaled. "I really hope I don't-"

"You only have one volume, don't you? Haven't you heard the expression that silence is golden?"

We looked to see Gladion there before us, stepping down the stairs of the motel.

"Yeek! It's him again!" Hau looked a bit scared, and I couldn't blame him. The platinum blond looked angry.

"What's bothering you, Gladion?" I wondered, raising an eyebrow. For some reason, I felt a lot less annoyed around him than I did with the other members of Team Skull. It was probably because he was a lot younger than the others were, perhaps around Hau and that kid, Moon's age.

"Listen, Team Skull is looking for a Pokémon named Cosmog. Do you two know anything?"

I nodded, not wanting to lie to this kid. But Hau stuttered, ruining it, or so I thought.

"So you do know something." Gladion gritted his teeth, his one visible eyebrow knitted in annoyance before it relaxed. He turned so his profile was facing us. "Look, Cosmog isn't even a strong Pokémon. But it has the potential to summon Pokémon so terrifyingly strong that you don't even know. If something like that happened, it would be a disaster for Alola."

"A...disaster for Alola?" Hau and I both spoke in unison, surprised at what the Team Skull enforcer just said.

"Protect Cosmog!" his tone became more tense, showing that he wasn't willing to say what this disaster was. "If you know where Cosmog is or if you do find anything out...just keep it safe!" he turned so he was facing us completely again. "I know I might be working for Team Skull right now, so you may not trust me or care, but....I'm going to tell you this just once. You have to protect Cosmog, no matter what."

He walked away from us, muttering how Team Skull even managed to find out about Cosmog in the first place.

I furrowed my eyebrows at this. Hau declared that we would have to get stronger and defeat the trials. He handed me something strange to assist me in the trial.

"What is this?" I questioned him.

"It's a Max Potion. I found it somewhere, and I believe it heals your Pokémon's health entirely. Also, I think I heard Acerola say that she's at the Aether House in Tapu Village. Perhaps we should go see if she's there."

"Good idea."

We headed back to the village, going up the stairs to the medium sized, white house. A monkey Pokemon with purple drawled on its back was in front of the secretary desk, and it seemed that no one was there.

"...Okay, that's odd." My olive green eyes observed the place. "There should be someone here."

Suddenly, two kids approached us, saying how they ran the place while Acerola was gone.They declared a battle for us to fight with their Pokemon, and I battled the little boy, while Hau went ahead and battled the little girl.

We both ended up winning against the two kids, and the little girl was still nagging at the sea green-haired rival of mine. I tried not to laugh at Hau's surprised face.

The doors swung open, and the kids departed from us, saying their greetings to the lavender-haired girl.

"I'm back!" she elongated the "a" in that sentence, then laughed a bit. "Looks like I finished up my shopping spree right on time. You've already met everyone?"

"Yeah." I nodded. "By the way, where is Lillie?"

"I left her with Hapu. They should be coming soon."

"That's good." Hau smiled in relief. I could of sworn he blushed a bit.

"So why don't we get the trials done first? You did know I'm the captain, right?"

Hau stepped back for a moment, shocked. Acerola and I laughed at this, since we expected he would react like that.

Acerola left Hau with the nagging kids, and told me where to go once more. Her trial was at the supermarket on Route 14.

I thanked her for letting me know, and watched as she left. I soon followed, descending down the steps, only to see Lillie being threatened by a Team Skull Grunt.

Lillie was stepping back, since the grunt was after her bag for money purposes.

I tried to tell the grunt off, but he ended up sending his Drowsee out in means of a battle. I sent out my Torracat in return, and told her to use Bite.

The Drowsee took a critical hit, and went down. The grunt returned it to its Pokeball, and grumbled after he handed me reward money. He went off without another word.

"Oh, Gwen! Thanks so much!" Lillie quickly hugged me. "That grunt almost tried to take Nebby without realizing it. Here, have these as a gift."

I stuck my hand out, and she put five dark themed Pokeballs in my hand. It took me a moment to notice that they were Luxury Balls. I put them in my large handbag that replaced my other one from a few days ago.

"I bought them without even thinking!"

Acerola came running back up to us, having seen what happened. "Oh! Lillie! What's the matter? You look all worn out. Why don't you rest here for a while?"

Lillie looked up at the Aether House. "I-I would really like that. Thanks, Acerola."

"Anytime." she then turned to me. "And you, Gwen! I thought you were going to follow me towards the trial at Tapu Village. Come on!"

I said my goodbyes to Lillie before pursuing Acerola. The sandy path became rocky once we got past the small barbed wire gates separating the place from the village itself. It felt more cold and chilly, and goosebumps were forming on my arms.

I should've brought a jacket...

Soon enough, we reached the trial. Acerola told me the basics of what to do, with the Pokefinder on Rotomdex, adding a special feature that I needed for this, since this was a Ghost Trial, after all.

She wished me luck, and I stepped inside. I quickly drew in a breath, soon letting it out.

The lights were dull all around the place. Shopping carts were laid about in the left corner, and most of the food there was stale. It was more cold inside than it was outside, adding to the creepy atmosphere.

Rotomdex was shivering a bit, and I told him that it was alright. But then again, I was just as frightened as he was.

Suddenly, one of the conveyor belts started to move. We headed immediately towards it, and I fired up the Poke Finder. I moved it around, trying to find the Pokemon. I nearly jumped when I saw a Ghastly before me, and I clicked the finder immediately.

The Ghastly hissed upon me doing that, and I sent out Fira to fight it. I ordered her to use Bite, and the Ghost-type Pokemon took a critical hit from the attack.

It went down easily, disappearing from view. I exhaled in relief, only to see Fira's entire body light up.

I stepped back for a moment, watching as Fira got bigger, and was no longer standing on all fours. In fact, she was standing on her hind legs. She was more muscular than before, and had the same colors as her first evolution did. Her eyes were a bright green, and a fire-like belt surrounded her waist.

I...I couldn't believe my eyes. She looked so different comapred to Litten and Torracat, her other forms. But it was a good different.

She was now Incineroar, the last evolution Kukui told me about. Looks like that training I did during the break paid off, even though I would miss Torracat a bit.

Fira roared proudly, and I had to shush her before returning her back to her Pokeball for the time being. I switched her Pokeball with Kasumi's before resuming the trial.

I took a few steps forward, then to the left. A shopping cart started to move, all of its own, and I fired up the Poke Finder once more.

I completely twirled my body around, since the Pokemon wasn't there right in front of me. I nearly lost my balance and almost hit into the edge of a product stand when I saw it float by. I accidentally clicked at the wrong time, and cursed as a result. I tried again, and caught its tail in the corner.

It happened to see me, and growled. Here we go again...this time, with a less aura-like form of Ghastly, Haunter.

I sent Kasumi out, and she quacked happily upon landing on the tiled floor. I commanded her to use Psybeam.

A narrow, bright magenta beam blasted right at Haunter, and it took a lot of damage.

It used Shadow Ball in return, and Kasumi took a little bit of damage.

I told her to use Pyschic this time, and Haunter went down immediately. I grinned in response, healing Kasumi with the Max Potion Hau gave me.

Now, onto the third one. I turned right, going straight down until I saw two large plushes - one Pikachu, one Mudkip, I think - float off of the stand they were on.

I walked towards it, and used the Poke Finder again. I could see the foot of what looked like a Gengar pass by me, and growled when it disappeared from me. But a second later, it reappeared, and I clicked the Poke Finder to take a picture of it.

Its crimson eyes set on me when I did that, and a small knot formed in my throat as I watched it land on the ground.

I sent out Kasumi again, and commanded her to use Pyschic. Gengar took a bit of damage, and was nearly on its last legs.

In return, it used Shadow Claw, and thankfully, Kasumi dodged it. She used Pyshic again, taking Gengar down completely.

I healed her again, and went to find the last part of the trial when I heard the pattering of feet. I turned quickly to see what looked like a Pikachu heading for the storage area.

That's odd... it wasn't there before, was it?

I walked to the storage doors, and tried to pry them open, but to no luck. The lock suddenly opened on its own, and I walked inside.

I nearly jumped when the Poke Finder on Rotomdex started up, all on its own. I had no choice but to use it.

All around the small storage room was pictures of Pikachu, and people who looked like they were Trainers that specialized in those. I turned around, looking down to see a Pokémon that mysteriously looked like one of them, but a lot more...dull and creepy. My eyes trailed down to the bottom of it, seeing the dark claws underneath and the wooden shaped tail.

I clicked, and the Pokémon switched from its disguise to it actual form, and I screamed.

"W-What the hell?!"

The Pokémon's aura flared to life, and I had no choice but to send out Fira. Rotomdex informed me that the Pokémon was named Mimikyu, the Totem Pokémon of the abandoned supermarket.

Holy shit. It's freaking creepy!

Attempting to figuratively swallow my fear, I told Fira to use Darkest Lariat, the move she learned upon evolving to her last evolution. She stood back, then twirled quickly towards Mimikyu, nearly sending it into the wall.

It was super effective against the Totem Pokémon, and its body suddenly snapped to the side. I took it that whatever disguise it was using failed. Despite its odd state, it managed to call its ally Pokémon.

A Haunter soon appeared next to it. My heart started to race, and I had to let out short bursts of air to calm myself down.

Something about the darkness and ghost-type Pokémon scared me a little bit...perhaps since I used to be scared of the dark as a child, due to my parents locking me in my room when I "disappointed" them...so the Ghost types were a reminder of that, which wasn't their fault, really.

I was still kind of getting over that fear.

I commanded Fira to use Darkest Lariat again, but this time, on Haunter. Haunter managed to make a move before my Incineroar did, which was Shadow Claw, but she avoided it in time with my shout.

She went with the same action she did before, and the Haunter fainted in one hit, due to how powerful the move was.

I sighed in relief, soon turning my attention back on Mimikyu. It used Play Rough on Fira, beating her up pretty badly before returning back to its normal spot.

Fira, thankfully, wasn't on her last legs health-wise, but was almost there. I knew I had to do something.

That's when it hit me that perhaps using Fira's Firium Z could work. I summoned the Z-Move by doing the pose, and soon enough, Fira's body was engulfed with that familiar yellow aura. She hit Mimikyu with the large fireball she created.

I waited to see how Mimikyu would be afterwards, and I was relieved to see that it had fainted upon me using the Z-Crystal. It fainted, disappearing from sight.

Fira was very happy about winning the battle, and before I knew it, she lifted me up, almost squeezing me to death.

"F-Fira, please put me down...you don't want to kill your Trainer..."

Fira made a confusing sound before she realized what she was doing, and set me down. I had to catch my breath before I could pet her as gratitude for working so hard.

I healed her, and fed her and the rest of my team Poké Beans as rewards. Fira was returned to her Pokeball afterwards, and I headed out of the supermarket.

Acerola looked surprised that I beat Mimikyu for the first try. "Wow. I didn't expect you to defeat my Totem Pokémon, given that they're a Ghost and Fairy type, of which those two don't really have any weaknesses."

"They don't?" I was quite interested in that. "They were weak against Fira's Dark moves."

"That's one of their weaknesses on the Ghost side. Ghost types are also weak against their own types, or even Pyschic. Fairy types are weak against Steel only, and- oh, I'm rambling again." she giggled. "Here's your Ghostium Z, by the way."

I took the Z-Crystal from her, smiling at the beautiful lavender color. "Thanks." I watched her do the move, and couldn't help but laugh at the last part of it, where it looked like she was attempting to scare someone who had hiccups.

"Memorize this when you use that crystal, and you'll be all good to go." Acerola grinned.

Silence formed between us, and I broke it when I remembered something. I told Acerola of how my Poke Finder had started up on its own when I was in the storage room.

"Oh, cut it out, Gwen! Are you trying to scare me?" she started having a laughing fit.

"No, I'm being serious. It did start up, as if it was possessed."

"Well, you have to come up with a better story than that! There's not even any room in the back of that shop, for starters! How gullible do you think I am?"

I gave her a look that meant that I wasn't kidding around, and the laughing completely ceased.

Her mouth dropped open, and her grey eyes widened. "Brr! I'm getting chicken skin...like a chill going through me for some reason..."

She blinked several times before turning away, walking away from the trial site. I soon followed her, wondering where she was going.

I saw her going to the Aether House a few minutes later, so I continued pursuing. I was shocked to see a couple of grunts there. Hau was battling one of them.

A familiar person soon stepped down the stairs, simpering. It took me a moment to realize who it was.

Plumeria! Why the hell was she here, of all places?!

Acerola and I approached them, and I glared at the magenta-haired admin. She glared right back.

"Back so soon, hm? I didn't expect that." she then glanced at the male grunt next to her. "It takes these dumb Grunts too long to deal with you kids..." she exhaled. "So I guess it's my turn now!"

"Good, because I am tired of seeing you here." I growled, and the admin merely laughed at this.

"Yeah, I am, too. You really had a lot of nerve coming across Gu-"

"Don't mention that idiot's name!"

"Okay, fine." she got out a Pokeball. "I told you before. Next time we meet, I'm not holding back!"

"I can see that, but trust me, you're going to lose, brat."

Plumeria growled, sending out her Golbat.

I sent out Kasumi in return.

It was on.


	21. Heading to the Skull Headquarters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen battles Plumeria and wins, only to find out what they had done before her and Hau's encounter with them. Gwen's not going to be happy.

I clenched my fists tightly, attempting to calm myself down. I really didn't want to encounter Plumeria today, but I had no choice.

I commanded Kasumi to use Psychic on Plumeria's Golbat.

Her Golbat attempted to use Confuse Ray, of which it hit Kasumi, but she shook it off to not let me worry.

Once that happened, her move hit Golbat, and it nearly fainted from the attack.

It used Venoshock in return, and the move was somewhat effective on my Golduck.

Kasumi used Psybeam this time, and her Golbat went down. I gave her a quick pat on the head to congratulate her before Plumeria sent out her next and final Pokémon, Salazzle.

It was a good thing I didn't switch out Kasumi, since her type is strong against Salazzle's second type, Fire.

I activated the Z-Ring, waiting for Kasumi's Z-Move spark to life. Right as it was about to, though, Salazzle hit Kasumi with its Flame Burst, which almost landed a critical hit on Kasumi.

She thankfully, was still standing, and I performed the move. In a couple of seconds, Plumeria's Salazzle was thrown into a water vortex, and slammed down onto the ground afterwards. It fell down immediately, and the admin returned her back to her Pokeball.

She handed me reward money in return, her golden eyes piercing into mine. She had muttered how she was angry about not winning before doing so.

"Hmph. Guess you are pretty tough. Now I understand why my Grunts waste too much time battling kids, even though you're not one."

I went to open my mouth, but apparently, she wasn't finished.

"But if you want us to return the Pokémon, you'll have to come to us. Alone. The boss is dying to meet you! See you at our base in Po Town!"

She walked away afterwards, the grunts following her.

I gritted my teeth. I really wished that looks could kill right now. Does she know how much she and Guzma get on my nerves?! Agh!

"Ugh...battles you can't afford to lose aren't very fun..." Hau looked down at the ground, frowning.

I looked at him, nodding in agreement. 'Yeah, that's true-"

I was cut off when Acerola suddenly ran up the stairs. We soon followed, wondering what was going on.

When we went inside, we saw the little girl crying. One of the Team Skull members had taken her Yungoos. Lillie was thankfully safe, with Nebby beside her.

Acerola consoled the small brunette, telling her that they couldn't have this happening, whatsoever. She remarked that the grunts actually did something clever for once.

"So...in order to get that Yungoos back, Gwen needs to go all alone? With no backup?" Hau stepped forward, his dark eyes on mine. "That's what they said, but it's not fair."

"It's not fair, indeed." I nodded. "They seem to realize that when we're together, we're quite strong against them. But they don't know how mad I can get when I'm alone, by myself." I looked at the little girl, who Acerola was hugging to help calm her down. I gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. I'll make sure to get your Pokémon back. I'll make sure of it."

The little girl smiled in return, and it warmed my heart to see that.

"Team Skull has taken over Po Town...it's basically their private playground now." Acerola pulled away from the little girl, her eyes on mine. "If you're gonna go through, though, try to find this guy on Route 15, who's wearing a kimono. He might be able to help you get to Po Town."

"Thanks, Acerola." I waved to them before I left. I could see the pained look on Lillie's face when I did.

She didn't like the idea of Pokémon being abducted. I agreed with her. No Pokémon should have to go through that.

Team Skull has gone too far...


	22. Second Meeting, Forming Puzzle Pieces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After getting help from a vaguely familiar person, Gwen finds herself at Team Skull's base, as well as butting heads with Guzma once more. But she starts to ponder about his rash behavior.

I had come across the said man in the kimono that Acerola told me about. He was dawned in a black and white one, and had familar looking hair. He was standing near the corner of a beach, looking out at the ocean.

I stepped back when I noticed who it was. "Grimsley?"

"Yeah, in the flesh. I take it that you're Katherine's friend?"

"I am. The name's Gwen. I feel like we've met before."

"I think so, too. Katherine has told me a lot about you, and I had seen you leave when she became Champion. It was before you came here to Alola, right?"

"Right." Jeez, he probably didn't realize how creepy that sounded. But I had to get to the point; I couldn't stay here all day. "Anyways, do you know how I can get to Po Town?"

"Oh, right." Grimsley gave me the instructions, and told me how the grunts operated there. "Just make sure to be careful. Remember the words of Uncle Grimsley."

I stared at him. "Uncle what now?"

He exhaled, moving his hand in a shooing motion. "Never mind. Just get going."

He disappeared without another word. Not wanting to know how he managed to do that, I followed his directions.

o o o o o

The clouds were together in the sky, making the place a lot darker than I suspected it to be. To make it worse, rain was pouring down, and I was getting drenched. I really wished I brought an umbrella.

There was a couple of grunts near the entrance, and I walked around them, since I didn't want to deal with them right now. I was just focused on finding Guzma and getting that Yungoos back.

The doors opened automatically, and soon enough, the town was there, right before my very eyes.

My eyes widened at what I saw. The place looked like an absolute warzone. Buildings were abandoned. Grafitti was everywhere. Same went with the Team Skull grunts.

I walked around, battling some of the Grunts there. When I was almost near the mansion, I saw a gate with two Grunts in front of it.

They wouldn't let me through. I growled, clenching my fist. I showed them that I meant business, but they weren't fazed. I looked around to try and find another way, and saw a hole underneath a hedge.

I went under it, nearly getting stuck due to it being smaller than I expected. I managed to get through, having to dust off the grass that got on my shirt and shorts.

The grunts looked surprised that I got through them, and opened the gate. I didn't understand why, so I just went inside the mansion.

The place was bigger than I thought it was. Grafitti, broken, paintings and vases were laid all around the place.

I remembered what Grimsley told me once I got to the mansion. Find the three passwords, but don't say yes upon meeting up with the grunt. Respond with the opposite instead.

After thinking over that several times, it sounded quite silly. But knowing Team Skull, they were like that.

I checked in all of the rooms that were accessible. One of them had two of the female grunts discussing their shirts, almost accusing the other of wearing theirs...even though they were the same exact size. They seemed to be into the argument, so I just went past them, finding a piece of paper that told me what the first password was.

This month's secret password is Beat Up.

My eyebrows furrowed at this. I wondered why a Fighting move was listed here, but I knew I had to remember this first word. I went onto the other room, where a grunt was playing on the Wii U in his, with video game cases lying around.

He seemed to be into the game and didn't notice me, or so I thought. As soon as he heard the paper be swiped off of the floor, he looked up, seeing me there.

I cursed underneath my breath. He got up from sitting on the floor, and got out his Pokeball. He sent his Drowsee out, and I sent out my Incineroar.

I commanded Fira to use Darkest Lariat, watching her use the similar twirl she did back in the Ghost Trial. It was a critical hit on Drowsee, and it was sent down.

The grunt looked shocked as he returned his Pokémon back to its Pokeball, and handed me the reward money. He went back to playing on the game, as if nothing happened. He dismissed the paper, saying that I could keep it; he wasn't really using it anymore, anyways.

I looked down at the paper, reading what it said.

This month's secret password is Golispod.

Golispod? I tried not to laugh. I knew that was Guzma that probably set up that password, since he favors that large Water and Bug type, knowing him. Heh. It's surprising that I know that, despite only knowing him for about six days.

I found the last one was in one of the rooms downstairs, since the right side of the hallway was blocked off by a fallen chandelier on the same flight of stairs going up to it.

Two female grunts were there, not really doing anything. They didn't even seem to pay any attention when I looked for the last piece of paper, seeing the last password.

This month's secret password is Tapu Coffee.

That's...interesting. I had a hunch that Guzma likes that drink. It started to click on what these passwords were.

They were relating to Guzma himself. That's it!

I headed upstairs to the grunt at the double doors, of which Grimsley told me about. I drew in a breath when I was face-to-face with the grunt.

...Here goes nothing.

I told him the three passwords, and he asked me if I was certain.

I almost said yes out of habit, but my mind reminded me at the last minute that it wasn't the right answer. So I said no instead.

"Good! It's nice to see that you're not a numskull-" his expression changed when he saw my glare, and his simper melted. "Um, never mind." the grunt stepped aside, letting me through. I had to walk through the broken window, across the roof, and to the room on the right. I nearly lost my balance due to looking down frequently, and also because of the rain making the tiles of the roof slightly slippery.

The doors opened, and there, before me, was the annoying, white-haired boss himself, Guzma. He was standing on top of what looked like a throne, leaning over a bit. A couple of grunts were on both sides of him.

I looked around, seeing the painting covered with graffiti behind his throne. The walls were the same purple maroon color like they were all around the mansion. I couldn't tell what was on the shelves, though, from where I was.

I was pissed about being drenched earlier, but thanks to walking around, I had dried off a bit.

"Well, if it isn't Gwyneth." Guzma simpered.

"What did you call me, idiot king?!" I growled, clenching my fist.

"Idiot King?" he cocked an eyebrow before letting out a burst of laughter. "Oh, that's good."

"Thank you. I'm very flattered. Not!" I had feigned a smile to show how annoyed I was at Guzma. He was wearing that smile of his that really got my nerves...and he knew it. "Where is that Yungoos?"

Guzma pretended not to know what I was talking about at first. "Oh, that Pokémon? It's kept away somewhere. But you would have to get through me first." I went to open my mouth to speak, but he lifted up a finger. "But before that happens, I would like to know why you came back. Wait a moment. Let me guess. Was it for me?"

I frowned. "Definitely not. You need to know that you shouldn't mess with me, or you'll suffer the consequences."

Guzma merely laughed at this. "You're cute when you're acting tough, you know? That's not going to get you anywhere, sweetheart. So if you want to battle, then let's battle."

"Gladly." I sneered, sending Rai, my Magneton, out.

The boss sent out his trusted Golispod in return.

I commanded Rai to use Thunderbolt.

Guzma's eyes widened, realizing the move I just used. "Golispod, move out of the way!"

But his shout was badly timed. Before he knew it, Golispod was hit by the attack. He hit the ground with a thud. Guzma muttered a word underneath his breath before sending out his Ariados.

I switched Rai out with Fira, and my Incineroar roared when she landed on the ground.

The white-haired man was slightly taken aback by how different my Pokémon looked compared to last time, and I could see why. I had been training my Pokémon during my spare time, and making sure they're as strong as possible. But not too strong to the point that they're overpowered, obviously.

Realizing I was not focusing on the battle, I shook my head, and commanded Fira to use Fire Burst.

Guzma's Ariados managed to get ahead, using String Shot on Fira. She thankfully dodged it, and went with the attack I told her to use.

His Ariados went down, due to the move being super effective against his single type, Bug.

Guzma gritted his teeth after he handed me the reward money. He was trying not to lose it. "You actually did great this time, I have to admit. Here's that kid's Yungoos."

He nodded to one of the grunts, and they handed me the Pokémon. I had a spare Pokeball, and I put it in there to help protect it.

I muttered a thanks in return, since Guzma wasn't one to give compliments all that often. He stormed off without another word, and the grunts followed him out.

Now, the room felt a lot more bigger than it did when they were in here. For some odd reason, I wanted to search around this room in particular, since it was different from the others.

I could see the treasure chest, full of what looked like a lot of Z-Crystals. Upon picking one up, I saw that it was a Bugnium-Z, obvious by the bug symbol on it. It was the only one shining, so I looked both ways, to make sure that no one saw me, and I put it in my handbag. The rest lost their glitter. I couldn't help but wonder why all of these were here.

...Was Guzma hiding something? Was he really wanting to become someone inspirational, but it all crumbled down on him when he least expected it?

I went over to the left side of the room, since my attention was now drawn to the shelves I was looking at earlier. I could now see the glass bottles on the shelves, some dusty from not being touched in weeks, perhaps. Some looked just as new, as if they had been used recently.

The memory of Guzma losing his cool flashed through my head, from when we first met. I then looked at the bottles again. It was obvious they had alcohol in them, and he had used some to help get rid of whatever stress he was having.

No...wait. That can't be it. Why in the world would he get after himself after losing, and drink his problems away?

Perhaps he was-

No, that's not it. It can't be. I don't want to believe it.

Also, it's too soon for me to jump to conclusions, anyways. I needed to head back to the Aether House.


	23. Acerola's Uncle, Finding Lillie [P1]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen encounters Nanu, the Kahuna of Ula Ula Island, after seeing Guzma huff out of the mansion due to her beating him once again. Unfortunately, Gwen will have to follow the boss' tracks again when she discovers what happened to Lillie, feeling Gladion's wrath beforehand.
> 
> Once they settle things and decide to find her together, the man from before offers his help. But not right away.

I walked out of the mansion, and came face-to-face with a grey-haired man. He had a police uniform on, but in a more casual sort of way. He had fair skin, and dark crimson eyes.

"Have I got you to thank for this?" he questioned me.

I looked down to see the Yungoos I saved next to him, and I smiled, nodding afterwards.

"Thing must've been scared half to death if it's glad to see a wretch like me." he laughed slightly, but his frown still stayed. He then looked back up, and thunder could be heard in the distance. "What a lot of hassle. You're a trial-goer, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I am."

He stuck his hand out, and I offered him my Pokeballs. It took him a few minutes to heal all of my Pokémon before returning them back to me.

"It figures. Look, I'm not going to fight someone that's taking on Team Skull. I healed your Pokemon for you, so...go. Just go."

He turned around, looking at the graffiti ridden place. "Though...looking around now...it seems there's less of those grunts than usual, huh? I guess some of them ran off after they saw their boss get beat."

Suddenly, Acerola came running over, seeing the two of us there. "Uncle Nanu!"

Nanu exhaled. "And here comes the noise again."

The Yungoos looked happy to see Acerola, and I smiled warmly. She looked down at the Pokémon, seeing it must've been scared quite a bit. Her eyes soon locked on mine. "Thanks, Gwen! Really! You're really something!"

"Oh, no problem. Anything to help you guys out." I rested a hand on my hip.

Acerola then turned to Nanu. "Uncle, you're a great police officer, aren't you? I really hope you're keeping a good eye on things here! What else do you stay here for, if you're not putting a stop to Team Skull's shenanigans?"

Nana merely shrugged. "The rent's real cheap. No one is crazy enough to stay this close to Team Skull, after all."

"That's what you always say." Acerola smiled knowingly. "But it's really all for the Pokémon, isn't it? You could depend on the Aether Foundation to protect any Pokémon that Team Skull hurts, but you stay here to look out for them, huh?"

No answer came from her uncle, so she took that as a silent yes.

"Come on, Yungoos! Let's get you back to the Aether House!"

She ran off with the Pokémon, telling Nanu that she would visit. He told her that no one was asking her to, but she just took that as another common answer.

"Then come by the Aether House when you're done! Alola!"

And with that, she was off.

"Pokémon tucked in their Pokeballs, Team Skull locked up in their little town...I wonder if either enjoys the experience?"

He walked away after that mutter, leaving me alone in the pouring rain. I found that quite interesting of what he said, to be honest.

He had a point. I guess it would be something to ponder on, wouldn't it?

I got out my Ride Pager, summoning Charizard. He arrived in no time at all, and I flew back to the Aether House.

Upon landing there, I saw that things were a bit...off when I walked up the stairs. I opened the doors, only to see the place trashed.

"What the hell happened?!" I ran up to Acerola, who was really worried. Hau was the same, too.

"Lillie...Lillie's gone. And so is Nebby!" Hau spoke up.

"What?" I couldn't believe my eyes. "Who?"

"It was Plumeria who took her!"

We turned to see Gladion there, with a vexated expression on his face.

"Gladion! Oh, thank goodness." I exhaled. He was just the person I needed right now. "Do you know where Plumeria took Lillie?"

"I do, but I want to know this.... was it Lillie that took Cosmog?!"

"Yes, it was."

Gladion growled, clenching his fists before doing his pose. "And you all are so useless and weak now that Cosmog is...Lillie is..argh! I'll show you how angry you make me!"

He sent out his first Pokémon, Type Null, and I sent out my most trusted Pokémon, Fira.

We fought our Pokémon for close to five minutes, and I ended up winning against him without switching Fira out. He handed me reward money after I healed her. When I looked into his eyes, I could see that furious expression of his has melted. It was more saddened, but still held that mentioned expression somewhat.

"That was wrong of me. I shouldn't have dragged you into a meaningless battle like that..." he exhaled, tearing his attention away from Hau and me from a moment. "But I told you both! I told you that Cosmog would bring disaster to Alola! I have to get it back from them!"

He took a moment to control his temper, then resumed.

"We'll leave for the ferry terminal. It's in Malie City. You guys are coming with me whether you like it or not, so the only question is, are you ready to come now, or not?"

"I am." Hau spoke up. I could see the intensity in his eyes...the intensity to save the girl he has been crushing on since they met.

"I have to make a call first, but I'm coming, too."

Gladion crossed his arms. "Who is the call to?"

I looked at his expression, seeing that he didn't intend that to sound nosy or rude. "...It's...it's to my mother, Ronnie."

The edgy teen was silent for a moment. "Just make it quick, alright?"

I got out my phone, dialing Ronnie. She picked up after the first two rings, and I told her what was going on. She sounded worried about Lillie, since I had told her about the blonde a while back. I reassured her that everything will be alright, that my friends and I are going to save her from wherever Team Skull took her. Once she was calm, I said my goodbyes and hung up.

"Okay. Now I'm ready."

"Good. Let's get going."

o o o o

We got to Malie City in no time, thanks to the Charizard from my Ride Pager. I had offered to give Hau a ride, which he accepted, but Gladion said he would just reach the terminal by foot.

Hau was excited about riding a Charizard for the first time, and I was relieved to see that on his face.

Gladion looked relieved to see us when we finally met up with him.

Suddenly, Nanu approached us. Gladion looked surprised to see him there. "Officer Nanu?"

Nanu merely shrugged at this, then looked at me. "You there, girl-"

"Sorry to interrupt you, sir, but the name's Gwen."

"Gwen, then. I took a long trip here to find you and your friend, including Gladion here. I'm the Kahuna of Ula'ula island, if you were wondering earlier. You'll have to battle me before heading off to wherever you're going."

My eyes widened. "What?"

"I know it's sudden, but you have to do it. You most likely won't be coming back to this island after this, or perhaps for a visit later on. So if you want to battle, let me know."

I drew in a breath. "...Okay, fine. I'll do it."

I got out Fira's Pokeball, and Nanu sent out his first Pokémon, Sabeleye.

Let's hope this battle goes well...


	24. Finding Lillie [P2]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen manages to complete the Third Grand Trial and Nanu helps assist her and Gladion to the Aether Foundation. Gwen and Hau are curious as of why Gladion believed this, but Gwen herself feels like he could be onto something.

I commanded Fira to use Brick Break, which I taught her through a TM I bought during my break. I wanted to see if it would be effective on Nanu's Pokemon, which I could see were Dark types...or part Dark, at least.

His Sabeleye used Power Gem in return, and Fira took a critical hit from the shining stones being sent her way. Thankfully, she was still standing, and went with the attack I told her to use, with the energy she had left.

His Sabeleye took the hit, and was on his last legs. I petted Fira's back to congratulate her, before giving her the Super Potion to help boost her health.

She purred as thanks, and I laughed at that. To be honest, I missed her being a small cat-

Gwen, you need to focus.

I told Fira this time to use Flame Burst.

Nanu's Sabelye used Power Gem again, but with my shout, my Incineroar dodged it just in time. She went with the spoken move, and his Pokemon went down.

I switched Fira out with Kasumi to give her a break, and afterwards, Nanu sent out Krokorok.

I smiled in relief, since I knew what Pokemon this was. Katherine had dragged me to the desert in Unova, just to show me it. The sand stung my eyes something fierce.

Shaking my head to get rid of the distractions, I told Kasumi to use Water Pulse, and Krokorok took the hit. I was surprised that he was still standing, since Water was a type this Pokémon was used to.

He used Night Claw in return, and Kasumi winced when the claws nearly dug into her skin. She took minimum damage from the attack, but it still hurt. She managed to pull off the move I commanded her to use a second time, and watched as Krokrok went down completely.

Nanu returned him back to his Pokeball, and sent out his last Pokémon, Persian. I congratulated Kasumi for her hard work, and switched her out with Shiro.

Shiro had evolved into a Toucannan during the break, and looked a lot more different than she did before. But I was proud of her.

I commanded her to use Rock Smash, which was a Fighting type move, but didn't sound like one.

Nanu told his Persian to use Pursuit, causing it to go first. It attempted to make Shiro nervous for a moment before hitting her right on the face.

Shiro took some damage from it, and I was relieved it wasn't critical. She went ahead with the move that was given to her, and she flew right towards the dark cat-like Pokémon, smashing right into it.

It went down, due to it being weak against Shiro's move. After Nanu returned his Pokémon to its Pokeball, he handed me reward money. And, to my surprise, he actually smirked.

"Well, shoot. Of course I knew you had the heart and strength to take on Team Skull's stronghold, but I didn't know you were this good. And your Pokémon worked real hard for you. Let me fix them up for you."

I waited patiently as he healed my Pokémon, then put them back once he was finished. I thanked him afterwards.

"Here's the Dark Z-Crystal. It's yours." he handed me it, and I put it in my handbag. "If you want to use it, here's the pose."

He showed me the pose, and I was honestly surprised that he could pull it off. Even Gladion looked shocked, and I had to cover my mouth to stifle a giggle.

"There. Congratulations, or whatever." the police officer shrugged. "You've successfully completed your Ula'ula trials. ...You've got somewhere else to be, don't you?"

I nodded, and Nanu gave me an understanding nod. He then turned to Gladion himself.

"And you, boy. Gladion. Tell me. If you're really trying to get stronger as you say, then what're you depending on Team Skull for?"

Gladion glared at him for a moment, then tore his attention away from the elder man. Nanu soon left without a word, and he let out the breath he was holding onto. "Don't you dare say a word about this being fun. I honestly don't want to go back, but I'll have to."

"And what place is that? Is it where Lillie was taken?" Hau spoke, worried.

"Yes." Gladion nodded. "It'll be Aether Paradise."

"Aether Paradise?!" Hau and I exclaimed.

I knew that Lillie and Gladion had run away from that place, obviously from what they've done. But why in the hell would Lillie be taken back by Pl-

Everything started to click together. Shit.

We needed to get there now.


	25. Finding Lillie [Part 3]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen, Gladion, and Hau are off to the Aether Foundation. The trip there won't be as welcoming as the last.

It had been three days since we set off for our mission. The ferry was a lot slower than we thought it would be, and it had gotten boring after a few hours of being on it. Hau and I battled off and on to pass the time, and Gladion stepped in at times. But most of the time, he was taking care of Type:Null.

The poor Pokemon was shivering while the blonde was holding him. It broke my heart to see this, and by Gladion's expression, he was thinking the same thing, too.

Gladion had informed me what had happened to him, and I listened carefully. I gasped when he told me how Type:Null was forced to battle other Pokemon like him, and not taken care of all that much. I was relieved to know that Gladion took him away from the place.

"So...this happened two years ago?" I questioned him, after he finished.

"Yeah. Mom had started becoming obssessed with the Ultra Beasts, especially with that jellyfish looking Pokemon. She didn't know that the Ultra Beast was the culprit of her sudden mood swings. She...she wasn't like how she was in the past. She became different, and started putting us down. She's too far gone, Gwen. We can't save her."

I exhaled, looking out at the morning sky before us. "I'm sorry to hear that happened, Gladion, but you're right. She's gone over the normal line for insanity. I could see it on her face when Hau and I visited the foundation for the first time. ...It scared me beyond words, to be honest."

"Is that why you were feeling lightheaded that day, Gwen?"

I looked over at Hau, and nodded. "Yeah. I apologize for saying something different, but I didn't want to worry you."

"I understand." Hau gave me an understanding smile. "We'll try and take down that lady together, even if we have to keep on reviving our Pokemon through it! Right?"

I grinned. I was kind of jealous of his confidence, to be honest. "Right."

We nearly jumped when the ferry suddenly bumped into something. Getting out of it, we saw the all too familar white setting of the docks. The crates were everywhere, and employees were walking around.

"We're here." I told them, and we hopped off of the ferry. I straightened out my high ponytail and the hood of my light crimson jacket. I had changed into that and long dark pants during the travel. Thankfully, there was a place to change clothes in, and I had carefully folded my other ones into my large handbag.

Gladion told us the plan once everything was clear. He wanted me to go and find Lillie, and Hau will soon follow afterwards. Gladion will try to help us out, but he'll meet up with us later.

We were off after he made sure we understood. I could see the outside from where we were, and I headed over there. Hau saw some Aether scientists, with the gold designs, and took care of them.

Escorting them was a familiar man. I had to take in his outlook before it hit me.

It was Faba. Of all the conceited people I've met, he had to be here.

Great. Just great.

He simpered upon seeing me, and I glared at him.

"So, you're finally here. I suspected you would be coming back. However, I'm not going to let you get past me so easily."

I crossed my arms, cocking an eyebrow. "Let me guess. You want me to battle you."

"Well, you're right for once, woman!" he snickered, and we sent out our Pokémon.

His was Hypno, and mine was Fira. I simpered at this, since I knew that Fira would be able to defeat the Branch Manager's Pokémon easily.

I commanded Fira to use Darkest Lariat, and Faba managed to have his Pokémon move first.

He told it to use Psychic, but with no luck. So Fira was able to use the commanded move, and sent Hyno down to the ground, with a critical hit.

Faba returned the Pokémon back to its ball, and shrieked. "Aieee!" he handed me reward money, then shook his head, not being able to fathom how I could defeat him.

"H-How could this be? How could this mere woman..." he stopped himself and paused. "Fine. If you're looking for Cosmog, I'm sure he's downstairs. But you'll need me to take you down there."

"Fine." I really didn't want to, but he had a point. After a minute, we were downstairs. The courtyard was in full view, and I immediately ran past Faba.

I was surprised to see Gladion there already, but it soon dissolved when I saw Guzma.

He smirked upon seeing me, and I glared at him. I should've known he would be here.

"The hated boss that beats you down and never gives up...yep! Big bad Guzma is here!" he crossed his arms, laughing. He then rested his grey eyes on Gladion. "I did this guy a favor and crushed him. Yeah, that was me. Leaving home just to get stronger. Going so far as to come over to Team Skull." he scoffed. "And rejecting your mother?! That's impressive."

Gladion didn't say anything to this, but his expression showed that he wasn't liking what Guzma was saying one bit.

I knew I had to step in.

"Hey." Guzma turned when I called him. "Yeah, you. You have no right to say that to him. He did that for a reason. Whatever Lusamine told you isn't true."

"Oh, I don't believe that one bit, Gwen. Lusamine knows what she's talking about, and I do, too. Gladion shouldn't have run away...same with his younger sister."

"Those are lies! They ran away because they couldn't take what that bitch was doing!"

"Bitch?" Guzma laughed. "You should speak for yourself- wait a moment!"

But it was too late. I had clenched my fist, and stepped forward. My fist was an inch from his face when my mind ran over his words. He had stopped my fist with his hand, and wasn't even looking at me.

"Guzma, what the hell was that? Why did you-"

"It's none of your business." his eyebrows had knitted in vexation, or at least, it seemed to be. He was tense, and I didn't know why.

I went to open my mouth, but he beat me to it, pushing my fist away.

"Now it's...it's your turn. You guys keep on getting up in my grill, like a cloud of smoke that I can't brush away. It's time I put out your fire at the source!"

"Well, the fire will keep on burning, no matter what." I simpered, and got out Shiro.

He got out Golispod, and we sent our Pokémon out.

I commanded Shiro to use Air Cutter, while he told Golispod to use First Impression. Thankfully, Shiro avoided it, using the move I told her to use.

His Golispod went down, due to it being a critical hit. Cussing underneath his breath, he sent out Ariados.

I told Shiro to use Beak Blast. Her sunset colored beak heated up.

Meanwhile, Ariados used Shadow Sneak. Shiro took minimal damage, but was alright nonetheless. She went ahead and charged Ariados, sending him down to the ground.

Guzma exhaled, switching him out with a strange-looking bug Pokémon with bright colors.

Rotomdex informed me that it's name was Masquerian, a Bug and Flying type. The gears started turning in my head, and I came up with something. I switched Shiro out with Fira.

His Masquerian used Air Slash, and with my shout, Fira missed it.

I then told her to use Flamethrower in return, and the fire hit Masquerian, nearly setting it up in flames. Due to it being super effective, the Pokémon immediately fainted, hitting the ground.

"Shit!" Guzma put it back in its Pokeball, and send out his last Pokémon, Pinsir.

I commanded Fira to use Flamethrower again. It was super effective on Pinsir, but he still stood, but barely.

He used Double Hit, hitting Fira twice. She took quite a bit of damage, but she didn't faint. She used Flame Burst this time, and Pinsir fainted.

Guzma groaned, clenching his fists. "Hey, what's up with you? Why can't I crush you?!"

He handed me reward money, and I merely shook my head. "Strategy, Guzma. Strategy."

"Whatever." he crossed his arms, trying not to lose it like he did before. That tense look was back again. "Looks like I have no choice. Go...go through."

I ran past him, and into the building he was blocking me from.

Why was Guzma so tense when I was about to hit him? That's what I didn't understand.

But I couldn't think that right now. Lillie needed to be saved, and Lusamine had to be stopped.


	26. Lusamine's Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen and the other two finally find Lillie. Unfortunately, Lusamine will make it hard for them to save her. Same for Guzma.

When I reached the room, I saw that there was a couple sets of stairs. They were blocked off by gates, but the door in front of me wasn't. The golden diamond was on the top of it.

Without hesitation - okay, just a little bit, I opened the door. Lusamine was conversing with Lillie.

Lusamine pretended to look surprised when she saw me. "Ah, Gwen...it's been quite a while since we last saw you..."

"Wha-?!" Lillie turned to see me, completely shocked. Her face then relaxed to a mix of worry and gratitude. "Y...you came? You actually came to help me, Gwen? Thank you!"

"So...you two know each other?" Lusamine frowned. "A gifted trainer like her...and she bothers with someone like you? How disappointing."

To my surprise, Lillie pivoted around. "I don't need your approval, Mother! Or your permission! I will save Cosmog!"

The elder blonde merely shrugged at Lillie's confident words. "My, you do say such incomprehensible things." Suddenly, her expression became sinister. "Calling me mother? I don't have any children! Certainly not any wretched children who would run and reject my love!"

She laughed. "So, tell me, how you'll save that Pokemon. What can you do, Lillie? You failed to convice me to listen to you. You don't even have the strength of a Trainer. The only thing that you've ever done is steal someone else's research material!"

Lillie set her attention on the ground, and my heart sunk. Vexation was boiling in my blood.

What...what kind of mother would even say things like that about her own child? That's...that's inhumane!

Lusamine turned around. "You're not beautiful enough for my world...but fine. Since you're here anyway, you can watch me summon my sweet beast. And then...you can leave."

"I'm not being foolish or selfish..." Lillie looked up. "I'm asking you to listen to me, Mother! Don't sacrifice Cosmog for that beast's sake! If you open the Ultra Wormhole, Cosmog...Cosmog will die!"

The woman's heels clacked against the tiled floor. She didn't even turn to look at her daughter as she stood near what looked like an elevator. "You're right...it probably will die. Because I'm going to force it to use its power whether it wants to or not!"

She touched the screen, revealing a...teleportation device? Where did that come from?

Lusamine turned around to face us. "Maybe if you really had been a daughter to me...I would have listened to you..." she scoffed, simpering. "Too bad."

And with that, she disappeared. Silence engulfed the place, sending chills down my spine.

Lillie turned to face me, slicing the silence in half. "Gwen...I really am happy you came after me...but...but I have to be selfish again. I have to ask you just one more time. Please...help me! Help Nebby!" her tone became overwhelmed with concern. We have to save Nebby!"

I immediately headed for the device Lusamine used, and I felt myself get transported to a different room.

It looked completely different from the others, and I mean, completely. Screens were displayed in the room, and water surrounded it beneath me.

I stepped off of the device. Soon enough, Lillie came into the room, too. I gave a warm smile, in hopes of everything going alright.

I looked around to see Pokemon trapped in huge chambers, engulfed by ice, and my stomach churned. Bile nearly rose up in my throat.

W-What the hell was wrong with this woman?! Who would even perserve their Pokemon like that?

Lillie looked around, unsure of what was going on. Soon enough, Lusamine turned, resting a hand underneath her chin, and the other on the elbow.

"Hurry. This way."

I knew we had no choice. I walked forward, now face-to-face with the insane President.

"What do you think? It's my private collection. My precious babies...they will all be preserved for enternity here-"

"I think it's f-"

Lillie's gasp cut me off. I didn't blame her. This woman was sick in the head.

"But my poor beast...what confusion, what rage must it feel, arriving in this strange world? It wouldn't be right to confine its feelings in such a small case as these ones. It will need to express itself. I think it'll express all its fury upon the Alola region as it will!"

A flash of light engulfed the place for a second, and Hau had appeared. He immediately ran over to us.

"Whoa! Gwen!" he waved to me, then saw Lillie. "And Lillie! Man, I'm so glad to see you're okay!"

Lillie blushed at this, hiding it from Lusamine. I merely stared at Hau, wondering how he could be this happy at a time like this.

Gladion appeared afterwards, with the usual vexated expression etched on his face.

"Ah, sweet Hau. So you came, too?" Lusamine chuckled. However, it didn't last long when she saw her eldest child. "Hmph. And Gladion. Must you be so untidy?"

The platnium blond walked forward, resting his hands on his hips. "Will you listen to me at least? You mustn't open the Ultra Wormhole! You can't let the beasts run wild!"

Lusamine approached him. A deadly silence formed between them, and we all looked at them in concern...excluding Hau. He had a confused smile on his lips.

"The daughter who stole my Cosmog from me and the son who took my Type: Null!" Lusamine's voice escalated, booming across the entire room. "All I did was ever give you the love I had, and all you did was betray me! You have no right to ask for my attention now!"

Gladion glared at her, not saying anything.

Hau turned to him, resting his hands behind his back. "Wait. Son? Daughter?" the realization finally hit him, and he stepped back in surprise. "You all are a family?!"

"Perhaps once we were... Sweet Hau." Lusamine frowned. "But those wretches beside you left me. "But it doesn't matter now. None of that matters now!"

She turned around, walking back to the screens. "I was able to open the Ultra Wormhole using just the gases we'd extracted from Cosmog when it was in Aether Paradise, wasn't I?"

I looked down at the device next to her feet. It made a sound, which could only mean that Cosmog was inside there.

Lillie winced at the sound it made.

"But now that I have Cosmog itself inside this crate here...if I use its entire body, how many Ultra Wormholes will I be able to open? How many sweet beasts will come to me then?"

"Please...stop..." her daughter pleaded. "If Nebby isn't- If you make it use up too much of its power...you don't understand what will happen!" she closed her eyes, drawing in a breath. "Like when we ran away from the Paradise...it couldn't move for ages after that..."

My heart sunk. That could explain why Cosmog was so frightened that day on the bridge. Lillie has known from the start how weak Cosmog is, especially when It used up its power to save her.

"If you use up too much of its power, it'll die!"

Lusamine growled at this, before it died out. She turned around, the crate in her hand. Lillie's eyes widened as her mom lifted it up for all of us to see.

"Watch...I will open this Ultra Wormhole for you...come to me, my sweet beast!"

There was a bright flash of light, and we had to shield our eyes from it. It died out as quickly as it came, and before we knew it, a cosmic colored light shot out of the crate.

It flew right into the air, and once it made contact with the ceiling, a wormhole formed. The whole place shook as if it were affected by an earthquake. We had to keep our balance, and I nearly lost mine and went over the edge of the floor. I caught myself and was in a crab walk position before I got up.

The jellyfish Pokémon from before appeared, and my face paled.

Thunder could be heard from outside. Cosmog moved around in its crate, trying to escape.

Lusamine glared at it. "Oh, must you be so annoying?! All I want is your power!" she chuckled. "But I will admit. Your power has served me well. There should be plenty of beautiful beasts appearing all around Alola as we speak!" she then turned to the screens. "Look! Akala and Poni...even on Melemele Island!"

I gasped sharply at this. That...that could mean that one of them could be near Ronnie. I wouldn't let this happen!! I don't want her to get hurt!

A flash of light distracted me from my thoughts, and I turned to see Guzma there.

Great. Just great. He has quite the knack of popping up everywhere I go, doesn't he?!

He ran up to us, his usual smile on his lips.

"Madame Prez...the experiment was a success, huh? Looks like it's time to catch this wicked Ultra Beast to beat down those annoying upstarts!"

"You're right..." she looked at him over her shoulder for a moment, before turning around completely. "Guzma. Quiet those children and that woman for me. I don't want to hear them again."

I could see the white-haired man lock his eyes on my olive green ones immediately, and it looked like he hesitated for a second. However, the smile formed back on his lips.

He moved over to the crate, but Gladion stopped him.

"I'll stop the beast! My partner Null was born to be a beast killer! Hau, you take Guzma!"

"Wait, what?!" Hau exclaimed. He jumped when he saw Guzma behind him, laughing.

"Gwen, you need to stop the president! If we don't, Alola will be flooded with beasts!"

"Copy that!" I nodded.

"What a disappointment...to think you are all so simple-minded..." Lusamine made a tch sound, shaking her head. "You're all going to startle my sweet beast! ...Gwen, it looks like I'll have to silence you first."

"I'd rather silence you, you lame excuse for a parent."

I walked up to her, getting out Fira's Pokeball.

While Lusamine sent out her first Pokémon, Clefable, I could hear Hau running to Guzma, about to battle him.

My heart was beating rapidly in my chest.

I needed to win against Lusamine. I couldn't afford to lose against her, or else, Alola will be destroyed!


	27. Saving Alola [Part 1]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Gwen's fight with Lusamine and shock over the realm, things start to tense up. She and the Aether siblings decide to stay at the Foundation overnight before setting what they were going to do next. More puzzle pieces about Guzma's behavior begin to form in her head.

I had gotten into an intense battle with Lusamine. Clefable was slightly easy to beat, but it had caused Fira and Shiro both to faint from its attacks, especially it's Fairy Type move, Moonlight.

I had defeated Clefable by using Rai's Magnet Bomb and Steel Canon. And for Lilligant, I had to revive Fira and told her to use her fire moves, Flamethrower and Flame Burst.

Lusamine simply scoffed at what I was doing, and I ignored it. She didn't seem to understand that she was losing...or I hoped she was.

Her Lilligant went down once Fira used her moves, and she sent out Milotic in its place.

Rotomdex warned me that its dual type was Water, so I switched Fira out with Rai, again.

I commanded Rai to use Thunderbolt, but Milotic took the first turn, using Hydro Pump.

It wasn't that effective on my Magnezone, which meant it took little damage. It used the move it was commanded to do.

Milotic took a lot of damage from the attack, but was still standing. It used Aqua Tail, but thanks to my shout, Rai avoided it, just in time.

I told him to use Zap Cannon, and that finished off Milotic.

Lusamine growled furiously, and sent out her last Pokémon, Bewear. I hadn't seen that type of Pokémon before, but Rotomdex told me what it was - a Normal and Fighting type.

Not wanting to risk Rai getting hurt, I switched it out with Kasumi. She used Psychic upon my command, and her Bewear went down without a problem.

Lusamine's hands trembled violently, lifting them up to her face. She then set them out, her teeth gritted. "H...how can you be so awful!"

She handed me reward money afterwards, and drew in a breath before letting it out. "Hmph." That's when she lost it. "All that I want is my precious beast! I don't care about any of the rest of you!"

This hit home for Lillie, Gladion, Hau, and me. That was awful that she even said those words. I looked over at Guzma, and he had shown the same face...but for a brief second.

...I couldn't help but think back to when we fought earlier, how he hesitated. He had let that wall down of the usual demeanor he wore. It was unusual, wasn't it?

Above us, the jellyfish Pokémon started to flicker in and out, and the wormhole began to close up.

Lusamine noticed that. "No! The Ultra Wormhole is disappearing..." she turned, her emerald green eyes on Guzma. "Guzma, with me. We'll catch the beast using the Beast Ball that we've developed here.

Guzma nodded. "Yes, m'am..."

We, excluding Guzma, watched in shock as Lusamine started to flicker as well.

Lillie shook her head. "Mother!!"

We gasped, stepping back when the wormhole suddenly opened, even larger than before. Lusamine waved to us, her lips curled into a sinister smile before she disappeared.

Guzma started to flicker, too, before he disappeared into the wormhole as well.

For some odd reason, I walked forward to try and stop him, but it was too late.

...They were gone. Gone from reality completely.

Lillie was trembling, tears prickling at her eyes. "Why?!" she walked over to Cosmog's crate. "Nebby...are you...are you all right?"

Something small came out, and I had to narrow my eyes to see it. Cosmog looked completely different from what it looked like before. It was now a very small moon shape, and its eyes were closed.

Lillie exhaled. "N-Nebby..."

"What is it?" Gladion questioned his sister.

"Yeah. That's what I'm wondering, too..." I muttered.

"It changed forms...and it's not moving..." Lillie got on her knees to look.

Gladion gazed at it thoughtfully, before turning around and taking a few steps forward. Hau and I turned to face him.

"Come on. Let's get out of here. Nothing good can happen here."

He made his way towards the teleportation device.

Hau looked at Lillie, who smiled bashfully and nodded. Hau blushed slightly, and followed Gladion. Lillie and I soon follow suit.

We were back in the room Lusamine was in prior. Wicke was there, smiling warmly.

"You are all unharmed. Oh, thank goodness."

"Yeah, maybe." Gladion spoke up. "But there is still a ton we have to do. There's the president and Guzma, who both disappeared into the Ultra Wormhole...not to mention Cosmog and why it stopped moving like that..." he exhaled, shaking his head. "Even if...she is like that, Lusamine is still our mother. We can't just leave her in the beast's world."

He pivoted around, facing us. "We might be able to reach other worlds if we had Alola's Legendary Pokémon on our side. The people of Alola worship it, but I don't know if it's even real..."

"Of course it is! The beasts are real." Hau interrupted. "After all, the beasts are real. I'm sure we can find it. We'll find the Legendary Pokémon!"

I nodded. "You're right, Hau. We can find this Pokémon, and save Lusamine and Guzma. I know that Guzma...that he's not a good, um, person, but he doesn't deserve to be stuck there. Same with Lusamine."

"I have to thank you both...both you, Gwen, and you, Hau." Lillie smiled.

"Miss Lillie..." Wicke looked like she just thought of something. "If you and your friends would like to get some rest first, I have prepared a few beds in the staff's residential headquarters."

"We'll take you up on that." Gladion nodded.

"Yeah, I'm beat!" Hau exhaled in the same manner.

"...I am, too." I didn't realize how exhausted I was until now. A yawn escaped my throat, and I stifled it with my hand.

Lillie walked up to the bed in front of us. "I...I think I'll sleep here. In the bed I once shared with my mother when I was small..." it sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "Just one last time."

We all headed off to bed, once Lillie got comfortable in hers. Wicke escorted us to the beds she mentioned.

Hau and Gladion were out like lights, but I was still wide awake, even after the purple-haired assistant turned off of the lights in the room.

I was worried about Lusamine, but...but mostly about Guzma. I was starting to think about his actions the previous times we met. Something about him seemed off, especially when I saw the bottles in his room at Po Town.

The alcohol...

Him yelling at himself...

Him trusting Lusamine, like a parent figure...

It was starting to piece together, little by little. But, I felt like there was one piece left, creating an empty gap in the thought process.

I had realized that, by thinking those over...that I didn't hate Guzma. Yeah, we are enemies, that's true.

But...but my hate has gone to a dislike. I needed to find out what else it was that proved me that he wasn't as bad as I thought he was.


	28. Onto Poni Island [Saving Alola Part 2]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen, Gladion, and Lillie set off for Poni Island. Hau is not happy to see his friends go but wishes them the best. Gladion reveals information about an odd flute that might help them later on.

The next day, we had gotten up and had breakfast in the staff room. I had gone to check up on Lillie, to see where she was.

She wasn't in her bed, which I found surprising. Heels clacking against the tiled floor got my attention. When I turned around, I saw that it was Wicke.

"Gwen? Miss Lillie is waiting outside, if you're ready to meet her."

"Oh. Thanks, Wicke!" I ran past her, and left the building. When I got outside, I saw Lillie there...but she looked completely different.

Her hair was tied up in a high ponytail, and she wore a white jacket with light blue on the hoodie and skirt. Instead of her dress shoes, she wore sneakers, with cuffed socks. A bright pink backpack finished off the look.

She looked up, shielding her eyes from the sun. Seeing that I was there, she turned around, grinning.

"I picked these clothes up in Malie." she rested her hands on the straps of her backpack. "Do you think they suit me?"

"Yeah, I do!" I grinned. "You look pretty, Lillie." I'm sure Hau would think the same thing if he saw you.

"Oh, Gwen. Thank you! I like your new clothes, too."

"What?" I laughed nervously. "All I did was discard my jacket, and find a white turtleneck that was in the extra box in the staff room. I couldn't find any jeans or shoes to get into." That, and I had my hair down again. That ponytail holder didn't work out well.

"Well, you still look great." she walked up to me. "I feel like there's so much to do. To save Nebby...to save my mother..." she exhaled. "I want to be like you, Gwen. I want to be strong enough to face my trial. That's why I'm going to try my hardest! This is my Z-Powered form!"

The platnium blonde grinned confidently, and performed what I recognized as Ilima's Z-move pose. She giggled afterwards, and I couldn't help but join in.

"So, this is where you were."

We pivoted to see Gladion approaching us.

"I found this downstairs." he proffered his hand out to Lillie, and she took it. I walked forward to get a closer look. My olive green eyes widened.

It was...beautiful, with the blue colors and the moon symbol on it. Gladion did his signature pose.

"It's the Moon Flute. It's apparently an artifact from Alola's past. They say it's to be played under the moon's light." he opened his eyes. "The Sun and Moon flute. When sounded together, it's said that they can call the Legendary Pokemon. That is, if you believe in old myths, anyway."

He retreated his hand back to his hip. "Looks to me like that woman was even planning to add the Legendary Pokemon to her little collection here." he walked up to me. "Here. Take this with you."

He stuck out his hand, and I took the item. I gazed at it, my eyes beaming.

It...it was a Master Ball. Katherine had gotten one when I was following her through her journey. I couldn't believe that I finally had one of my own. This is amazing...

"That ball can catch any Pokemon without fail." he looked at his sister out of the corner of his eye before locking his eyes back on mine. "I'm counting on you to help Lillie. It's the least I can do."

Lillie frowned, baffled. "But what are you going to do, Gladion?"

"Deal with this mess." Gladion pivoted around, so his back was facing us. "I have to clean up Aether Paradise. "I'd wanted to get as far away from this place as I could, together with Null...but in the end, it looks like I ended up right back here again..."

"Wait for me!"

We looked to see Hau there, smiling as brightly as ever. "Hey, and it's Lillie, isn't it?" he took in her outfit. "What happened to you?!"

Lillie's cheeks dusted a rosy pigment from the compliment, and she smiled. "Yup, it's me! Now I'm ready to use my full force, too!"

"You look fantastic!"

The pigment on Lillie's face became a deeper color.

Gladion glared at him. Oops, Hau shouldn't have said that in front of her brother! I had to stifle a laugh, and looked away from them.

"What was that?"

Hau turned to face him. "I'm going to train even harder. I've gotta do more." He then faced me. "I keep getting saved by Gwen and her Pokemon, don't I? That's not enough. I've gotta be able to save Pokemon on my own! If I can't do that, I'll never become an island kahuna! I'll never be able to make people really smile!"

Hau's eyes widened, and he released his hands from the back of his neck. "I still haven't done Acerola's trial...or anything. There's a lot of catching up I have to do."

Gladion exhaled. "Sorry for dragging you into our family mess."

"Yeah..." Hau locked his dark eyes on Gladion's emerald. "But we got to see things that almost no one would ever get the chance to see! Maybe if I train even harder, I'll get to see more amazing things like that again!"

Gladion shook his head, frowning. "Yeah...our mother likes to do things on...an extravagant scale."

Lillie nodded in agreement. "I'm glad you came, too, Hau."

I smiled at this. It was obvious that they recognized they had feelings for each other, finally. I could see that Gladion was trying not to get into his overprotective brother mode.

"I can get you to the next island at least. Poni Island. I'll wait for you at the docks."

Lillie pumped her fists downward, with her elbows bent. She was smiling with excitement. "Come on, Gwen! Let's show the world what we can really do!"

She and her brother headed off for the docks. I looked over at Hau. My eyebrows descended with sorrow.

"So...I guess this is goodbye, until we meet again during your journey?"

Hau nodded. "I am going to miss you, Gwen-"

He was taken aback when I pulled him into a hug, quickly pulling away. "I'll miss you, too."

And with that, I went to the docks, not looking behind me. I was set on going to Poni Island and finding a way to save Lusamine and Guzma!


	29. Finding the...Kahuna? [Saving Alola Part 3]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen and Lillie set off into Poni Island after parting ways with Gladion. But why is there no Kahuna? Perhaps Hapu might be able to give an answer.

I met up with Gladion and Lillie at the docks, and Lillie smiled upon seeing me.

"Are you ready to go?" Gladion locked his eyes on mine, and I nodded.

Lillie grinned. "Let's go, Gwen! No holding back."

We hopped onto the ferry, and we were off. 

We had reached Poni Island in a couple of hours. I looked around the island, seeing that it was indeed a lot smaller than the others, from what I could see of it, that is. Shops were on Pokemon designed boats, and a tree was in the center of the docks.

"Poni Island..." Gladion voiced his words when we got off of the ferry. "Almost no one lives on it, but you'll find a whole lot of nature to explore here."

He then turned to Lillie and me. "Go. Find the kahuna. They also protect the shrine where Alola's people worship the Legendary Pokemon. Maybe they'll know something that might help you."

"Gladion..." Lillie spoke up for the first time since the ride here. "Thank you for this. But...but when you took Null and left Aether Paradise two years ago...you left me alone with Mother! She was so bad after you left! If I hadn't had Wicke with me..."

She trailed off, and I could understand why.

Gladion exhaled, looking away from his sister. "I'm sorry...I wasn't there for you when you needed me. All I could think about back then was finding a way to save Null. That was the battle I was fighting. But now you've got your own battle to fight. I know you can handle it."

He turned around, walking away from us and to the ferry. We waved to him before he left our sight.

Lillie turned around, her hair swaying along with her movement. Her emerald green eyes were set on my olive ones. "Gwen. I'm okay. You don't have to worry. I know what I have to do now."

She closed her eyes, ceasing her words for a moment. Her eyes shot open when the words formed in her head. "And...I don't know. Maybe it sounds strange, but..." a smile formed on her lips. "But I'm kind of excited."

The platinum blonde walked away, towards the tree. She was conversing with two Kantonian tourists, their Pokémon beside them.

Rotomdex flew out of my handbag, and I had to readjust the button on it so it would close.

"Poni Island, here we come! Zzz-zzt!" he spoke cheerfully. "Wonder what kinds of Pokémon we'll come across here, eh, Gwen?"

"Yeah, that's something to think about." I smiled thoughtfully. "Come on, let's go and see Lillie."

He flew back into my handbag, and I headed over to Lillie. Right as I did so, a voice boomed, welcoming us to Poni Island.

We both turned around, seeing a tall, round man with dark blue hair and orange eyes. He was standing on top of the large fish-shaped boat, with a Pelipper next to him.

"Oh my goodness!" Lillie exclaimed. All I could so was merely stare at the man.

Why was he on top of the boat, o

We waited until he went back into the boat, soon joining us by the entrance.

"I'm sorry. Who are you?" Lillie questioned him.

The man rested his hands on his hips. "Me? I'm the captain of the seafolk. It's my job to keep everybody together."

"The...seafolk?" Lillie's eyebrows furrowed.

I leaned in, cupping my hand near my mouth. "I think that means the people who have their boats here, Lillie."

"O-Oh."

The captain nodded. "What did you think all these boats 'round you are for?" he turned, moving his right arm in a presenting manner. "We've been spent years navigating the seas and searching out new wonders. When we find rare things, we bring 'em here to Alola to trade."

He then turned back to us. "The ports on the other islands are busier these days, but we still always seem to end up back here on Poni, eh?" He observed our expressions. "What did you all come for? You collecting berries, like us?"

"We're here to visit the kahuna." Lillie replied.

The captain's expression became thoughtful for a moment. "The Kahuna? Hm. Maybe you should go to little Hapu's place? Her house is the only one still standing on Poni, after all. Where else would you go, eh? You can recognize her house at a glance, thanks to that huge Mudsdale of hers.

"Oh! So does Hapu live here on Poni Island? Thank you very much, Chief!" Lillie smiled, and then faced me. "Come on, Gwen. It will be good to see Hapu and Mudsdale again!"

"Yeah, it definitely would." I grinned. "I have to go to the Pokémon Center first before we do so."

"Alright. I'll wait for you here."

I departed from the young girl, and headed into the said building. I healed my Pokémon, fed them some Poké Beans, and bought some Max Potions. I had sold most of my Hyper Potions to get them, thanks to the reward money I got recently and earlier on.

Fira wanted me to pet her more, and nearly picked me up when I said no politely, but when she saw my look, she stopped. She went back into her Pokeball, and I exited the Pokémon Center.

I met up with Lillie, and we headed immediately for Hapu's house. Rotomdex helped get us there by making a red flag of where our destination was.

We came across different Trainers, and I battled some of them. Lillie offered to heal my Pokémon afterwards, and I thanked her.

We eventually walked through the tall entrance of a path, which looked ancient to me. Rotomdex informed us that it was Ancient Poni Path.

This must be the place. We were a few steps into the place when Hapu's Mudsdale turned to face us, neighing happily.

"It's good to see you again, too, Mudsale!" Lillie grinned. "You look to be in fine form." she then turned to me. "Wow...Pokémon trainers really do amaze me. It seems like a hard path, and even so, you don't let yourself be held back by the fear of seeing your Pokémon friends get hurt... You just keep striving forward together..."

Footsteps could be heard, and we looked to see Hapu leaving her intricate house. "Oh, it's been a while, Gwen. And you brought Lillie along, too?"

"Yes, it's good to see you too, Hapu!" Lillie spoke.

Hapu's eyes widened, just noticing her new outfit. "You look different...like you're ready to go all out in something now."

"Thank you, Hapu. I've finally discovered what I need to do. So this is my Z-Powered form!"

"Ho!" the mocha-skinned girl grinned proudly. "Then you do your best, Lillie. No one could call you lily-livered!"

I looked confused. Did...did she just do a pun?

Lillie laughed at this, perhaps not recognizing that. "Um, so, Hapu...do you know where to find the kahuna?"

Hapu's eyebrows rose. "The kahuna? Hm." she shook her head. "Don't have one here on Poni."

"What?!" Lillie and I both exclaimed, then her respectively, "Now what do we do, Gwen?"

"Hmph." Hapu got our attention. "Well, I suppose the time might be right now...I already finished up my battle against that odd little thing that appeared out of the sky..." she opened her eyes. "All right. Let us all proceed to the ruins. You stick with me, you two."

Mudsdale neighed in response, and Lillie and I smiled.

Hapu got onto her Mudsale, and we followed by foot.

"Gwen...we just have to keep going, right! But then again, you're a Trainer, aren't you? I suppose you always keep moving forward."

"Yeah, that's true-"

"Wait there." an elderly woman's voice cut me off.

We pivoted to see a woman near the opening of the backyard. Lillie jumped in response, not expecting that at all.

I didn't, either, so I couldn't blame her.

The woman had mocha skin, just like Hapu did. Her hair was a bright white, and she had dark crimson eyes. She stepped out of the backyard and a minute later, she was in front of us.

"I-I'm sorry..." Lillie spoke up. "I don't think we've been introduced..."

The woman giggled. "I'm Hapu's old gran. You two friends with my girl?"

Lillie and I both replied with a yes, and glanced at each other, not expecting to respond in unison.

"So she has friends now!" Hapu's grandmother giggled once more. "Traveling around islands...making new friends... You kids are luckier than you know."

I looked out of the corner of my eye to see a large, muscular Pokémon approaching us. Hapu's grandmother saw him, too, and smiled.

"If you want to head for the Poni Island ruins, how about a bit of help from this old gran?" she looked at me. "Here. Let me have your Ride Pager for a moment."

I handed it to her, and she gave it back a few seconds later.

Suddenly, I felt myself get lifted up by the Pokémon, and I nearly freaked.

"Oh, sorry about that. It activated right when I registered Machamp onto there." she deactivated it, and I was back to normal. "You'll need to move some big obstacles to make it down the path that you two hope to travel. I wish you both a bright future." she grinned, nodding with certainty.

She went to walk away, but something had passed her mind, causing her to turn back around. "My Hapu was heading for the Ruins of Hope, wasn't she? Go after her. First, you'll have to come to Poni Breaker Coast. You'll know it by the soil - it's black as pitch. Go through there, and you'll find the ruins."

"Thank you very much, m'am! You have been a great help!" Lillie grinned, and so did I.

Hapu's grandmother left our sight, and once she was out of it, Lillie turned to me.

"The Ruins of Hope...that is where the guardian of Poni Island will be. That is where Tapu Fini lives." a confident smile formed on her lips. "Let's go!"

We headed for the ruins, by following Hapu's grandmother's instructions. Rotomdex helped us out by pinpointing the location for us.


	30. Ruins of Hope and Exeggutor Island [Saving Alola - Part 4]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen and Lillie head into the Ruins of Hope, not expecting to find out Hapu became the new Kahuna. Thankfully, she's able to give them more information on the Moon Flute, suggesting an oddly-named island. Perhaps that might help the two in their journey?

It felt like forever to reach the Ruins of Hope. Up until we got there, I had Machamp carry me to make the trip faster. He also had carried Lillie as well, and she was ahead of me now.

I eventually got to her, after battling some Trainers who were exploring the rocky terrains. Before us was the familar entrance like the Ruins of Life had last week. Mudsdale was next to her.

"The Ruins of Hope..." Lillie spoke, awed by its beauty. "What is this place? The air feels so oppressive..."

Now that she mentioned it, the air was indeed oppressive. I suddenly felt like a lot of weight was put on my shoulders.

"But...but if we go in there..." she resumed. "Maybe Nebby will return to normal!" she then turned to me. "The people believe that the guardian diety of these ruins, Tapu Fini, can wash away any impurities with its mystic water..."

"That actually sounds like it might work." I nodded in a museful manner.

"That's right, it does, Gwen! I'm going to give it my all so that we can return Nebby back to normal! So just you wait, Nebby! This time, I'm going to be the one that saves you!"

I couldn't help but grin at this. Lillie has really come a long way compared to when I first met her. She's more confident than she was, and a lot less shy. Hau and the others have really helped her come through, especially Ne- I mean, Cosmog, itself.

"Come on, Gwen! Let's go!"

I followed her into the Ruins of Hope. I was taken aback by how large it was, especially the huge, intricate rocks that were before us.

"If we're going to break a path, we'll need to move these huge rocks!" the platnium blonde told me once I approached her. "That's what Hapu's grandmother said, isn't it?"

She drew in a breath before trying to move the rock in front us. She groaned in response. Sadly, the rock didn't move an inch. She tried again, but she still failed. She walked up to me, catching her breath.

"I don't think I can do this. I-It's heavier than words can even express... We'll have to borrow Machamp's formidable strength for this task. I read it once in a book. If I remember right, it said..." she trailed off for a moment, then her eyes brightened up. "'When getting a ride from a powerful Machamp, Trainers can activate Machamp's Shove by standing before a rock and activating the Ride Pager!'"

She paused, since that was a lot to say. "And if we find ourselves getting frustrated, we should probably remember to step outside again for a bit of perspective."

Yeah, that made sense. But something confused me. "If I get mad about this and step out of the ruins for a moment, what would happen to the rocks?"

Lillie shrugged. "I don't know. I-It wouldn't be possible for them to move back on their own, right?"

I nodded slowly. "...Right. That would be weird if they did."

I activated Machamp on my Ride Pager, and soon enough, it appeared.

It helped me move the rocks with ease, and I felt like passing out on the floor afterwards, face-first. Lillie helped me up when I collapsesd, and allowed me to take a breather. After I did, I deactivated Machamp.

Lillie and I took the path ahead from the now sunken rocks. We went into another room, with two sets of stairs of either side, going up to what looked like a platform to worship Tapu Fini. She stopped for a moment, locking her eyes on mine.

"I've read about them, you know...Alola's sacred ruins...and the guardian deities worshipped with them. They go wherever they want...so it's not easy to meet them, according to the books I've read. But if they are summoned here at the ruins, they do sometimes appear."

She pivoted so she was facing ahead, and took out Cosmog. I looked down at its form, and my heart broke in sympathy for the creature.

"The books say that they are, well, capricious."

"Capricious?" I cocked an eyebrow.

"Yeah. Encounters with them do not always end as you hope they will. Maybe that explains why...even coming here to these ruins hasn't evoked any response from Nebby..."

She looked up when she saw someone up there. My eyes followed hers, and they widened.

It...it was Hapu! I could understand why she would be there, but it was quite a surprise.

A light was pulsing from the spot Hapu was worshipping at, which piqued my interest. It suddenly died out when she proffered her hand out, grabbing for something.

"I give my thanks...for your great blessing." she spoke up, looking towards the worshipping spot. "As kahuna, I will do my best for the people...and the Pokémon of Alola."

She turned around, seeing us there. "Oh! So you two were watching?"

We both nodded. I had no words for once. It...it was amazing!

The girl descended down the left set of stairs, now before us. "The kahunas are chosen by the Pokémon we worship here in Alola - our sacred guardians. They are chosen from among the people living on the island each guardian watches over. Lillie told me you were pretty new to our parts, huh, Gwen? You came to Alola from far off?"

"Yeah, I am. I'm originally from Sinnoh, but I had moved to Castelia with Ronnie, then here recently." I nodded. "I came here last week - no wait. Last Monday, to be specific. I can't believe that a lot of things have happened since then, especially with the fiasco with Team Skull, Guzma, and the Aether Foundation. This may sound weird, but this place feels like home that I should've been at beforehand.

"Glad to hear that." Hapu smiled. "You must really be something then. I heard how you were given a sparkling stone by the tapu, even as a stranger to our shores."

She soon turned around, gazing at the worship spot. "My grandfather...he was also chosen for this honor. The honor of being our island's kahuna. But he died suddenly some years back, and we were left without a kahuna on Poni."

Lillie and I gasped at this. We were both sorry to hear about her loss.

"I tried to follow in his footsteps, but I was not chosen by the tapu back then. So I set out on my own sort of island challenge, traveling Alola and trying to get stronger."

She was silent for a few seconds, then locked her bright lavender eyes on Lillie, a smile on her lips. "Lillie. The kahuna you wished to meet is here."

Yes! This is amazing. Hapu deserved to be a kahuna.

"O-Oh! Thank you!" Lillie nodded in gratitude. "Please, Kahuna Hapu! Tell me about the Legendary Pokémon!"

Hapu's eyes broadened a bit. "So you want to know about Solagleo, who we pay tribute to at the Altar of the Sunne?"

Lillie's eyebrows furrowed with sorrow, and she looked down at her sneakers. "My mother disappeared into the beast's world...I know that she was a terrible person, but she's still my mother. I need to see her again, to tell her something." Her expression became that of determination. "That's why I want to ask the Legendary Pokémon for its help...it's the only one who can go back and forth between worlds!"

Hapu swiveled so that she was looking away from us. She had a musing expression etched on her face. "The world of beasts, eh... is that what that thing was that came to Poni Island? A beast? Tapu Fini and I tried to fight it, but it nearly did us both in. We did not stand a chance."

She turned to us, having formed something in her head. "Alright. I will tell you what I know."

"Oh, thank you, Hapu!"

"But what I know is not much. Just that there is a ceremony held for the Legendary Pokémon at the altar. A ceremony that uses two particular flutes to somehow give the Legendary Pokémon power."

Our eyes widened. We hadn't known this before.

Lillie handed the Moon Flute to Hapu. "This is the Moon Flute. It seems that my mother had it..."

"Ho! That looks like the flute that used to reside at the lake in Ula'ula. The other is said to be held on Exeggutor Island. I don't know why there of all places, but it has been passed down that that's where it belongs."

"Exeggutor Island...I think I've read about it before. It's an uninhabited island off the coast of Poni, isn't that right?"

Hau nodded. "Yes. And there is no reason to dally there. Let us go and speak with the seafolk's chief! Lillie, you take Mudsdale. We proceed to Seafolk Village!"

Lillie and I grinned brightly at this, soon following the petite dark-haired girl out of the ruins.

o o o o

We were back at Poni Island about ten minutes later, and met up with the Chief. Hapu told him where we were going.

He told us to get onto the Magikarp designed boat, and we were off. We thanked Hapu before we had departed. A while later, we were on Exeggutor island itself. 

I took it back on what I said about Poni Island when first landing on it. It wasn't the smallest island after all.

Grass and palm trees surrounded the place, with the ocean being the majority of it.

"Heh... Here we are at Exeggutor Island!" the captain spoke up. "I heard this place used to be a trial site, though that was a long time ago now. You go on. Good luck to you both!"

We thanked him, and Lillie smiled in my direction. "Let's go find that flute! Right? Trainers really can go anywhere as long as they have their Pokémon, can't they? I think I'm beginning to understand the appeal."

"Right." I watched as she went a little further up the island, then waved to us. I followed suit, and the captain went back to his ship, going back to Poni Island.

Lillie had stopped near a tree, and turned around to face me. Her ponytail nearly whipped her in the face. "I feel like trainers can open up the door to any future as long as they have their Pokémon. That's what it looks like to me when I see you, Gwen! And Hapu and Hau, too-"

She was cut off by a sudden tremble in the ground, and she immediately headed back to me. "What was that noise, Gwen?!"

There was another tremble, or so we thought. Suddenly, the tree became something completely different. It was now a Pokémon, with a very large neck and three heads.

H-Holy crap. I recognized what this was. It was an Exeggutor!! It was a lot different in Alola, apparently!

I got out Fira's Pokeball, and sent her out. Rotomdex informed me that this Exeggutor was a Grass and Dragon type. A bit confusing, but it did make sense.

I commanded Fira to use Flamethrower, which was super effective on the Exeggutor. It used Egg Bomb in return, completely throwing both of us off.

Fira growled at the explosion that hit her, but thankfully, she wasn't hurt all that much.

I told her to use Outrage this time, a Dragon type move I taught her from a TM a while back. She lashed out at the Exeggutor, taking him down.

The giraffe-sized Pokémon hit the ground hard, fainting. I congratulated Fira with a hug, and she nearly squeezed me to death, per usual. Lillie had to come and tell my Ininceroar to release me.

Suddenly, thunder roared above us, and dark clouds immediately emerged in the sky. We immediately headed into a small hideout that served as shelter from the rain. I put Fira back in her Pokeball afterwards.

"Rain in Alola, huh...my skirt got a bit wet." she laughed nervously, then exhaled. "Looking at the rain like this...reminds me of one time when I was little. I'd seen it in a movie...this man singing and dancing in the rain. It captivated me so much that I had to try it for myself. My mother spotted me out in the rain, and she was so shocked that she ran right out after me without even bothering to get an umbrella..."

The platinum blonde exhaled before resuming. "And then...she smiled...and she danced with me in the rain. Of course we both ended up catching colds. She let me sleep in her big bed with her. I was so happy that I kept waking her again and again, just to be sure it wasn't a dream. But...then she changed. And all she could think about was the Ultra Beasts. And Null and Nebby... They both ended up suffering so much... and I couldn't do anything.

She grinned at me. "But you know what, Gwen? Whenever I feel like there's nothing to do, you seem to show up and... you do something. Every time, you've shown me it's possible to do something. Even the first time we met... Nebby was attacked, and all I could do was look on in horror... And at Aether Paradise...all I could do was wait for you and the others to come save me... Whenever I'm in any sort of trouble, you're always there."

I smiled warmly at this, and I could feel tears prickling at my eyes. It really warmed my heart to hear her say these words.

"Thanks. That...that really means a lot, Lillie. It really does. To be honest, I never really had any friends back in Sinnoh, or even in Unova."

"Really?" Lillie looked surprised, even as I rested my back up against the wall of the hideout, soon sinking down to the floor. "Why is that?"

"...Because...because my parents really didn't let me make any friends. I didn't understand why. Perhaps it was due to their jobs that kept them so busy, and that's why. Or perhaps it was because someone supposedly related to me had left, and they knew that he was my only friend that I had. So they kept me away from most kids my age. It's odd that I can't remember his name, but I truly cared about him." I could feel tears running down my face, and I used my hand to wipe them away. "I don't know where he is now, but I do hope to see him again if I could. I wish that he was still there when my parents started abusing me."

"What?! Your...your parents abused you?"

"Yes, they did. It's a long story, Lillie, and I'd rather not talk about it. But I assume that you now know where these scars came from."

I pulled the left sleeve of my turtleneck sweater up, presenting her the scars. Lillie had a pained look on her face, so I let go of my sleeve, allowing it to go back to its usual state.

"Y-Yeah, I do. I'm so sorry, Gwen..."

"It's alright, Lillie." I smiled. "The past is the past. I'm only focusing on you guys and the future now, as well as saving your mother and...and Guzma."

The platinum blonde had noticed my pause towards the end of my sentence. "Are you talking about Mr.Guzma?"

"Yeah." I looked at her, having just noticed my attention was absently set on a patch of grass. "What about him?"

Lillie exhaled. "Well, I had noticed that you had told me a while back about you meeting him. You stated loud and clear how much you hated him, especially for what he's done in that gang of his, Team Skull. But...but that day at Aether Paradise, you wanted to save him from my mother. Did something change?"

I felt my cheeks start to heat up a bit. "I...I guess you could say that. I did hate him when we first met, but I've been coming across some things that have slowly changed my mind about him. There's just something about him that seems off, and I can't put my finger on it. I remember saying earlier before we went to bed yesterday that he wasn't a bad person. Perhaps he's not, and I'm just assuming things. Yeah, that's probably it."

"But you're still curious to find out what that missing thing is, right?"

"Of course. As weird as it sounds, I would like to find that out...to find out what Guzma is really like...what he went through."

Silence overtook our words, filled in by the pitter patter of the rain outside. Lillie broke it with a stutter.

"Um, Gwen...what are you going to do, once you finish your island challenge?"

I shrugged. "To be honest, I don't know. Perhaps go back home to my adopted mother, Ronnie, and train my Pokémon to my heart's content. But who knows what will happen?"

"True...it must be nice, though, knowing what you want to do, or not. I really admire that. I think...I'd like to became a trainer, too, and travel with you, Gwen, if I could. I wish that Hau could travel with us."

Her cheeks doused a light rosy pigment from a moment at the mention of my friendly rival's name. She went to say something else, but the light spilling out in front of us got her attention.

"Ah!" she ran out of the hideout, and I followed.

"What is it-" I began, but gasped when I saw a rainbow in the sky. Oh my Arceus...I haven't seen one in years.

"Maybe there really are some good omens sometimes, wouldn't you say?"

"Yeah, definitely." I grinned, but it didn't last long. "Oh, wait. We need to find that Sun flute..." my voice trailed off when I noticed that Lillie had disappeared. "Lillie? Lillie! Where did you go?"

I looked all around for her, and eventually found her near a small altar. She was gazing at something, but I wasn't sure what.

"There you are! What did you find?"

Lillie stepped aside, and my olive green eyes broadened. It was no doubt, the Sun flute itself. It was obvious by the sunset-like colors, as well as the sun drawn on the handle of it.

Without hesitation, I took the flute from the pedestal, gazing at its beauty. I was so relieved that we found it.

"Now we have both of the flutes, the Moon Flute and Sun Flute!" Lillie exclaimed. "I don't know if it'll summon the Legendary Pokémon, but we can at least try! If nothing else, we'll have sounded the flutes in offering like people used to do. So thank you for coming this far with me, Gwen!"

"Oh, no problem. I would do anything for you and the others, Lillie, really."

"Let's go meet the chief of the seafolk, and get back to Poni Island!"

The chief had come back for us, and taken us back to the island. Once we got back there, we presented him the flutes. He laughed heartily.

"Look at you, trail-goer! You going to the altar to play the flutes? The altar lies all the way through the Vast Poni Canyon. It's a long road there. The path is like nature's own trial. Good luck to you, friends."

"Thank you, Chief." Lillie and I responded in unison. We glanced at each other, and started laughing. This was the second time it had happened today!

The Chief waved us off, and we set off to the canyon. I was looking forward to seeing this altar.


	31. Hapu's Grand Trial, Then to the Altar [Saving Alola - Part 5]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen encounters several of the Team Skull grunts. Once she takes some down, it takes her by surprise that Plumeria is there. After hearing the admin's advice towards her, Plumeria hints towards something that throws Gwen off guard. Thinking that she might just be teasing her, Gwen waves it off so she and Lillie can continue onto the trial. Hapu's is not going to be an easy one.

We had reached Hapu's village a couple minutes later. I was nearly out of breath, and during our walk there, Fira and my Pokémon had popped out of their Pokeballs. Figuring that they wanted some food, I gave the last I had and petted them. I told them that I would provide more later on.

However, right as we got towards the entrance to the canyon, about six Team Skull Grunts were blocking our path. Five male, one female. The female was squatted differently than her brothers.

For the first time, I wasn't angry to see them. I walked up to them.

"You're from Team Skull." Lillie noticed them right away. "What is it that you want from us?"

The fourth grunt stood up, putting his hands on his hips. "Here they come! I heard about you numskulls at Aether. Do you really know a way to save our boy, Guzma?!"

The female grunt followed suit with his stance, but had one hand on her hip. "We can make you talk, even if we cut you to the bone!" She did her usual pose, and then sent out her Pokémon.

A few minutes later, the Pokémon that she sent out, Fomantis, was down. I had used Fira's fire moves on it to do so.

She was shocked, and gave me reward money. The other grunts stood up, shouting whatever words that came out of their mouth at us.

Exhaling, I sent Fira out once more. It took a while to take down their Pokémon. They were just as shocked as their sister.

Almost all of them laid down on the ground, but one of them was still squatting.

"I'm not giving up, even though you beat me! I'm part of Team Skull! We're thick as anything!"

"That's enough. No one wants a sore loser."

All of us looked up to see a vibrant magenta-yellow haired woman at the top of a cliff. It was Plumeria.

How did she manage to get up there? Also, has she been there the whole time?

...I had expected to feel a pulse of hatred towards her, but I didn't. Heh. Looks like my puzzle with Guzma had changed my perspective on his friends quite a bit, hasn't it?

She got off of the cliff, and talked with the grunts. Soon, they were sulking away. She then turned to us.

"Hmph. You, girlie..." she directed that towards the platinum blonde. "Lillie, right? You really ready to do this finally?" she exhaled, turning around, with her eyes closed. "To be honest, I've treated you really badly. Even if I was just doing the work the president told me to do, I shouldn't have done all that. Even if I apologize now, I know it's probably too late for you to forgive me, though."

She pivoted so now her back was facing us, instead of her profile. "You see, Guzma...he really likes the president. In a platonic type of way, though. She's the only adult who ever seemed to see how strong he was."

"The president..." Lillie frowned sadly. "My mother is - she's selfish. She lavishes her love only for those she deems worthy, not caring whether it is wanted or not." She shook her head, that confident expression of hers returning back on her face. "I'll save her. I still have something I need to tell her. And I think I can save Guzma as well."

"Y-Yeah, me too." I nodded. Lillie had taken the words right out of my mouth.

"You know..deep down, you're kind of like the president. You've gone a different direction, but I can tell you have the same strength in your convictions." she closed her eyes once more. "Bring back Guzma, if you can. I know you've got no reason to help...but no one can make up for what they've done if they're gone."

"And you, Gwen. Looks like you were special after all. You didn't just stand up to Team Skull. You even took on the darkness inside Aether. Looks like you're the real deal. The realest Pokémon trainer I've seen around. Take good care of our little princess here." she smiled afterwards, and I couldn't help but smile, too.

Thanks to what she said, I saw Team Skull in a completely different light. Yeah, I had started to feel sympathy for them, just a bit. But Plumeria here took it on another level. For once, I felt sympathetic for her as well. It's awful that whatever they escaped from caused them to make bad decisions in this gang...but then again, they became like one big family.

Was it bad to say that I wished that I had a family like theirs, where they could always be there for each other?

"This is my way of saying sorry, okay?" Plumeria had resumed without me knowing, and got my attention. "Take this Poisonium Z."

She stuck her hand out, and the small Z-Crystal was put into my hands. It was a beautiful purple color, and I felt happy about it. I thanked Plumeria, planning to use it for Golbat later on.

"Oh, yeah..." the admin seemed to remember something. "You got your first stone directly from Tapu Koko, didn't you, Gwen? You'd better take care of it. That's one special Z-Ring you've got there. A Trainer is only a Trainer because of the Pokémon with them. If you ever forget that, you'll bring the wrath of the tapu down upon yourself. You should be fine, though. I'm out of here."

She turned around. She was about to walk away before stopping. "Oh, and Gwen?"

"Yeah?"

She looked at me out of the corner of my eye, smiling. "I can also tell that you've changed quite a bit since we first met, especially towards Guzma. You're going to be in for a surprise. Just wait and see."

And with that, she was off. Lillie's eyebrows furrowed with confusion. "What does she mean by that?"

I could feel my cheeks heating up, but more than they did earlier. "I-I don't know. But I think we should focus going to the canyon now and using those flutes."

We went into the entrance of the canyon, and saw Hapu there, standing right in front of a huge, bare tree.

She smiled when she saw us, resting her hands on her hips. "Did everything go well?"

"Yes, it did!" Lillie nodded, smiling ever so brightly. "Though Gwen had to help me out of all sorts of trouble, like usual."

"Nothing wrong with that." The mocha-skinned cowgirl grinned, her eyes showing the same expression. "People can't survive all out on their own. They have got to help one another out. Same for Pokémon, too. That is what my grandfather used to say."

Her Mudsdale neighed in response. Her eyes opened, and she pivoted towards me. "I would like to see this battling skill of yours, Gwen, that makes Lillie smile so. Just so! It is my grand trial! I may be young, but that does not mean that I will be outdone by any of those other kahunas! I am certain that my bonds with Mudsale and the rest of my team are the closest you'll find anywhere in Alola! Do you want to try and take me and my Pokémon on at our full strength?"

"Definitely." I had checked and made sure that all of the Pokémon on my team were healthy and ready to go beforehand, after I had battled the grunts earlier. I had to put on a cocky smile. "Only if you take on mine."

"Fine by me." Hapu copied that smile. "I am Kahuna Hapu! And I have made the sparkling stone that the tapu entrusted me with into a Z-Ring of my own! Having a Z-Ring like we do, Gwen, means that we battle with the tapu beside us. This is the first grand trial I've done! I will battle you with everything I've got!"

She began the battle by sending out her Dugtrio. I sent out Fira in return.

A sandstorm kicked up right when it was sent out, and I could feel the sand nipping at my eyes. I had to shield them with my arm.

Fira was slightly affected by the sandstorm, but was looking forward to this battle as much as I was.

I commanded her to use Flame Burst, and thankfully, it landed a critical hit on her Dugtrio. It took a lot of damage, and now had very little energy left.

Hapu commanded it to use Bulldoze, taking me completely off guard. Before I knew it, the ground shook, hitting Fira up. She went down, and I had to return her back to her Pokeball.

I sent Kasumi out in her place. Shit...I didn't see that coming at all. I'd better be more careful.

I commanded her to use Water Pulse, and it hit her Dugtrio like a shot. It went down, and she sent her Flygon afterwards.

I revived Fira, and switched Kasumi out with her. I commanded my Incineroar to use Outrage, but Hapu's Flygon beat me to it.

It used Earth Power, and Fira could feel the vibration through the ground hit her. It was critical, but thankfully, she wasn't down completely. 

She went ahead with the attack I told her to use, and it was super effective against her Flygon.

It went down in one hit, and Hapu exhaled. She then sent out Mudsdale. She suddenly changed her mind and sent out Gastrodon instead.

I congratulated Fira for her hard work before sending out my Golbat, Guzma. I knew that this Pokemon was a Water and Ground type, so it wouldn't be wise to use Kasumi.

Thankfully, I had taught Grass Knot to Golbat a while back, so I hoped that this would work out. I commanded him use it, and waited for it to happen.

Soon enough, a small piece of grass formed in the ground in front of Gastrodon, then tied into one big knot. It hit the Pokemon hard, and it went down in that one blow.

Hapu's eyes widened at this while I congratulated Guzma on his move, high-fiving his left wing. She soon sent out her last Pokemon, Mudsdale.

Man, this switching out was getting repetitive for me. But it's seeming to work so far. 

I switched Guzma out with Kasumi, and watched as Mudsdale landed on the ground, neighing per usual. 

I commanded Kasumi to use her Z-Move, Hydro Vortex. Thankfully, Hapu's Pokemon didn't go first this time, so I was able to perform the move.

Her Mudsdale was sent into a water-like hurricane, then slammed down onto the ground. It fainted upon impact, and Hapu returned it back to its Pokeball.

"Thud!" she spoke, shocked. "That's the sound of your strength rocking me to the core!" the new kahuna gave me quite a bit of reward money. "You sure showed me. That was enjoyable. Looks like I can't beat you even when I am not holding back... I appreciate this chance, Gwen. It has really taught me a few things."

She drew in a breath, the proud expression of hers melting in a serious one. "Take your Ground-type Z-Crystal then...This Groundium Z is yours."

I took the light brown crystal from her, and put it in my handbag.

She then taught me the pose, which was quite interesting. She moved her arms in a circular motion, twirled, then landing on the ground, as if she was going to throw something.

"Hyah! Phew..." she turned to Lillie. "Well, I must applaud you, Lillie. You sure found a prodigious Trainer to befriend." 

She then set her sights on the entrance behind the tree, which I had just noticed. "Then go on with you two! Head straight through here and find the altar! The path to the shrine is through the canyon. You'll find other Trainers in this place, though. They come for training. It will be a tough road. You'll have to pitch in, too, Lillie. But if you two end up in any real trouble, Mudsdale and I will hasten to you."

"Thank you, Hapu! I'll do my best!" Lillie nodded to let Hapu knew she comprehended. 

Then without another word, Hapu got on her Mudsale, and was off. We soon headed into the canyon, and sure enough, trainers approached us.

I fought most of them to get through, and Lillie helped heal them afterwards. To my surprise, my Golbat had evolved during the last battle I had, and into Crobat. I hugged him,, so proud of it getting to his final evolution. He didn't want to be hugged in the first place, so I immediately let go.

We got towards the top, finally, and Lillie walked out of the exit after me. She had to catch her breath.

"Phew...this canyon truly is a difficult path to walk. And you even make the Vast Poni Canyon seem like nothing at all, Gwen!"

I laughed. "Thanks, but to be honest, I'm just as exhausted - whoa, what is this?"

We looked ahead to see a bridge, going right across to another entrance.

Lillie walked forward, standing right in front of the bridge. A brave expression was etched on her face. "But you know what, Gwen? I've overcome my fears enough to cross even a high bridge like this one!" she looked over her shoulder at it. "I'm not going to be afraid of heights anymore. Next time I should even be able to tackle that bridge on Mahalo Trail!"

A smile soon formed on her lips. "Watch this! This is my trial!"

My heart started to race in concern for Lillie as she took one step on the bridge, then another. She looked around, making sure the coast was clear. Unbeknownst to her, though, three Murkrow were waiting above. 

I went to tell her to watch out, but she noticed them right before I did so. One attempted to block her from behind, and the other two in front. However, they didn't seem to notice that they left a small gap, making it easy for Lillie to pass through. 

"Oh!" she exclaimed before waving to me. "Gwen! I did it! I made it all the way across!"

"That's amazing, Lillie!" I ran right across the bridge, avoiding the Murkrow. "I knew you could do it! Well, actually, I was a bit worried, but I'm still proud of you nonetheless.

"I've cleared my first trial! Amazing, right, Gwen?" she grinned after I told the Murkrow off.

"Yeah!" I nodded.

Lillie giggled in response. She then noticed that my Pokemon might need to rest, and she healed them. I thanked her in response.

We headed into the entrance, coming across more Trainers. I made sure to avoid them this time, since I really didn't feel like battling them right now. 

We came across another bridge, only to see a dirty blonde-haired woman with casual clothing standing on it, staring at the sky.

She looked surprised when she turned, seeing them there. She then held out her hands like a camera.

I merely stared at her, wondering why she was doing that.

"Oh! Now that's a great composition!" the woman exclaimed. I could now tell that she had paint smeared on parts of her hair, and the bridge of her nose. "I could paint a picture of you - the visitor of Poni!" she then remembered that she hadn't introduced herself. "Guess I forgot to say my name. I'm Mina. I'm the captain. I mean, I sort of am. I actually just wander around doing my art, so I don't have an actual trial or anything... but Vast Poni Canyon sure is a wonder, huh?"

"Yeah, it is." I smiled.

"Once you've been through this place, you can really get to understand why that Ilima boy designed his trial the way he did, right?" her eyes widened briefly. "Oh, yeah. Here. Take this as a token of our acquaintance."

She stuck her hand out, and I took what she had in it. It was a...Fairium Z? That's interesting. I put it in my handbag.

"Its the Fairium Z. Get your Z on - uh, what's your name?"

"Gwen."

"Oh, that's right. Gwen!" she then walked ahead, supposedly leaving the area. "I'm the captain and all, so I've gotten come up with a trial. Maybe it could involve painting pictures and picking flowers...maybe a trial like that could be cool?" She then turned, saying her goodbyes.

Lillie and I continued onwards, and I had to face two Veterans, one female, one male. It didn't take that long to defeat their Pokemon, since I used Kasumi the whole time I fought them.

Lillie, once more, had to catch her breath when we got to a trial entrance. "Hah...hah...sorry...I'm not very good...at running...phew! It looks like we're nearly to the altar now, aren't we, Gwen? Let me take care of your Pokemon for you."

I handed my Pokemon to her, and waited until she healed them completely. I thanked her before putting them back in their Pokeballs around my belt.

"Let's get going, Gwen."

We headed into a slightly narrow canyon. I walked forward, seeing that there wasn't that many Pokemon around here.

There was no captain around, obviously...but it felt like a trial to me. So why not do it?

I resumed onward. Suddenly, I could feel a piercing gaze, that seemed to cut right through me. But where? I couldn't see anything that could justify that.

I walked over to the right, and suddenly, something screeched. I turned around, only to have a small, dragon-like Pokemon dive right at me from above. Rotomdex informed me that it was a Jangmo-o, a Dragon type. Of course.

I sent out Fira, and told her to use Outrage. In one hit, the Pokemon went down, falling onto its side. 

After healing her, I continued walking. I could feel my heartbeat increasing just a bit. Now that that happened, and I had a feeling it was going to happen again...probably?

Right as I said those words in my head, another Pokemon came diving towards me. It was a little taller than the previous one.

Rotomdex told me that it was Hakamo-o, the evolution of the Pokemon prior. I had no choice but to send out Fira and use Outrage again.

It went down in one hit, and fainted on the spot. 

I exhaled, relieved that went well. I soon saw a what looked like a pedestal, holding a bright crystal inside it. Hey, I haven't seen one of those in a long time.

I took the crystal from the pedestal. However, it was one inch from my handbag when a loud roar boomed through the place.

I slowly looked up to see a large Dragon Pokemon land right in front of me. My olive green eyes widened, and I stepped back. 

It roared its name, Kommo-o, out loud, before an orange aura engulfed around it. That could only mean one thing.

It was a Totem Pokemon! Now, that's really cool.

I sent out Fira, and commanded her to use Outrage. It was super effective on the Kommo-o, but it was still standing.

In return, it used Clinging Scales. The vibration hit Fira, and she took quite a bit of damage. She wasn't on her last legs, which was a relief.

I commanded her to use it again, and it hit Kommo-o with the same powerful force. I was so relieved when it went down.

It managed to get up, and hide far away. I stared at it in awe, not expecting that to go so quickly. I guess I would be considered lucky that it did. It was quite a ferocious Pokemon.

I realized that I had dropped the Z-Crystal I had in my hand before the battle. Thankfully, it didn't shatter, so I picked it up, observing it. It was a light teal color, and the symbol looked like a dragon's eye. So a Dragonium Z, I would guess. 

I put it in my handbag, and headed straight ahead to the light shining from the exit.


	32. Surprises and Sudden Developments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen and Lillie already have the flutes and are ready to save Lusamine and Guzma. But as they go in and experience the twisted realm for themselves, Gwen finds one last thing about the boss that will change her views towards him drastically. As well as hers on Lusamine.

My eyes widened when I saw the place. It...it was breathtaking! The stairs were a bit beat up, though.

A female voice shouted my name, and I quickly pivoted around.

It turned out to be Lillie, waving at me. Hapu was beside her on her Mudsale. They soon approached me.

Hau took a look at the altar, then turned back to us. "Our history tells us that the Vast Poni Canyon trial was the very first trial ever to be held." a smile soon formed on her lips. "You did a fine job clearing it, just as expected, Gwen!"

Lillie nodded in agreement. "You've cleared all seven trials of Alola's island challenge now! That's wonderful! You've pushed yourself beyond your limits and really became a great Trainer, haven't you?"

I laughed in response, rubbing the back of my neck. " I have. Thanks, Lillie, Hapu."

"And she could have never done it without your Pokemon. Let me heal them up real quick!"

She healed my Pokemon, then handed them back to me.

Hapu grinned at us when we faced her. "Look at the two of you. I think this might just work out." she laughed, showing her teeth. "No, I am quite sure of it!"

Mudsdale neighed in response, and we all laughed together.

"The Sun Flute...and the Moon Flute. If we sound both together..." Lillie muttered to herself, musing, until an idea formed in her head. "Let's go, Gwen!"

We both headed up the stairs, which almost felt neverending. We finally got there, seeing the ancient designs around us. Some had the symbol of the sun, and some of the moon. Two stones floated on top of the foot-deep water.

Lillie closed her eyes, drawing in a breath. "I can feel the strong power of the sun..." she exhaled, her expression becoming that of a mix of sorrow and determination. "Nebby...I'm going to make my mother wake up and see reason before I send you back to your old world! I'm going to make her hear me...I'm going to tell her how I feel! Even if I'm not a trainer, I can still do that much!"

She drew in another breath, closing her eyes for a brief moment, right after she put the Moon Flute in her hands. "The Moon Flute... It feels like it was made to fit my hand. I think I can play it..."

The platnium blonde headed over to the first stone. "Gwen, you should stand over there." she told me, gesturing to the other stone.

I nodded, the Sun Flute in my hand. We both set the flutes to our mouths in unison, soon playing the music slowly and carefully. I was surprised we even knew it.

Suddenly, the water started to glow beneath us, and the altar started to shake. It soon turned into two auras, both going in separate directions until they reached the top of the altar. They turned green upon making contact.

We watched in awe as the sun symbol opened, revealing a bright orange light. We jumped when it suddenly shot a beam out, creating a small moon-themed aura in front of us.

Lillie and I shielded ourselves from the wind that was caused by this. Lillie's backpack started to come off of her shoulders, and flew right into the small aura.

Cosmog soon flew right into the center of the aura, the backpack falling lightly onto the ground. Before we knew it, a white light nearly blinded us, and we had to shield our eyes again.

When the light settled down, Cosmog wasn't there anymore. In fact, it was a large, white-furred lion Pokemon! It had the sun design around its mane and most of its body. Its eyes were a light blue, with its forehead being as cosmic as its previous form used to be. 

"Whoa..." I couldn't believe my eyes. Did...Did Cosmog just turn into what I thought it turned into?

This was amazing!!

We immediately ran up to it, and it roared.

"Nebby..." Lillie spoke up. "Th-thank goodness, you're all right... Please don't ever do that again! You made me worry so much! And I never imagined that sounding the flutes would give you so much power...or let you evolve into the Legendary Pokemon!"

The Legendary roared once more.

"Not in all of my reading...never did I ever come across any hint that you would evolve into the Legendary Pokemon..." she closed her eyes. "Please, Solagaleo-" she stopped herself, shaking her head. "No...Nebby. Please. I need to see my mother! And Gwen needs to save her and Guzma!"

Solgaleo let out its last roar, making us both smile. We got onto its back, and it opened an Ultra Wormhole. It jumped into the sky, lighting up before heading straight into the wormhole.

Everything slipped into darkness for a moment. Solagleo roared again, and we flickered into...wait a moment. What the hell was this place?

We looked around, seeing that this place was almost dark. It was psychedelic, too. My head felt like it was spinning suddenly.

"How...surprising." Lillie voiced her words. "It's more beautiful than I would have expected...but the air is so thick here... It almost hurts to breathe..."

She was right. My throat felt like it was nearly closing up on me. It hurt like hell.

"A-Are you scared?" I questioned her.

"I'm not sure..." she shook her head. "Nebby evolved, and I'm in a different world, and there's just too much that has happened..." She relaxed, and that confident look from before was on her face. "We should go-"

Solgaleo roared, cutting her off.

Lillie rose an eyebrow. "What is it?" it then dawned on her. "Are you telling us that you have to stay there?"

It roared again, meaning a yes. Lillie smiled.

"I'm...I'm so grateful to you for bringing me here, Nebby. Thank you! I guess I have to go the rest of the way myself."

"Good idea." I followed her, and Solgaleo wished us good luck with another roar.

Lillie wasn't that far away from me when she saw someone resting on top of a small cliff above us. She gasped when she realized who it was, and the same went with me.

It was Guzma! I had expected him to be just as crazed as Lusamine was, but no. He seemed to be in thought.

"I'm the Team Skull boss, and I've never been scared of nothing or nobody. Heck, I live my life, making people scared of me! So listen what big bad Guzma has to say..." he opened his eyes, making the most stupid face ever. "Y'all are stupid!"

He slid off of the cliff he was on, and approached us. He rested his hands on his hips.

"How in the world did you even get to this place?" he questioned, then shrugged his shoulders. "I've got no idea how you did it, but here you are."

"Are...you alright, Guzma?" the words slipped out of my mouth, and this caused the mocha-skinned man to rest his eyes on mine. 

He honestly looked surprised at my words, and let out a small scoff. "I'm not fine...it's all dark here...I've got no clue what's going on, but there's beasts everywhere..." he opened his eyes. "I tried to catch one of those things. I ran towards one of them, thinking that I could get one."

His eyes widened, but then he shook his head. For once he truly looked scared shitless.

"But it possessed me! And that's when it happened! My body, my mind... They started running wild, and I couldn't do anything about it!" his voice rose to a yell. "It was like I became somebody else, and I finally felt what fear feels like! It was terrifying!" he gripped his curly white locks with his hands, his arms trembling. Tears were prickling at his eyes.

Lillie gave him a concerned look, and I did, too. But for me, it was something else, entirely...

The last puzzle piece was right before me. The first was him shouting at himself.

The second was the alcohol.

The third was him hesitating when I was about to punch him at Aether Paradise.

And the fourth...it...was fear.

Why didn't I know that earlier? My stomach started churning, but not in a nauseating way. My face started heating up big time.

What was going on? Why was I suddenly feeling so nervous? My eyes locked on Guzma, and it hit me.

I had fallen for him. The person I thought was my sworn enemy, which had switched to dislike over time...

I couldn't believe it. I just couldn't believe it. I had to calm myself down to regain my words. Man, this had turned awkward really fast.

"Guzma, I'm terribly sorry to hear tha-"

Guzma's pivot cut me off. "I may be the Team Skull boss, and I've never been scared of nothing or nobdy, but...that lady...she's on another level! She's way far gone! She lost her mind over these Ultra Beasts." he shook his head. "There's no talking to her, no reasoning with her...she's just gone..."

To my surprise, Lillie shook her head. "That doesn't change anything. I still have to go!"

"Yeah, me too. We need to take care of this crazy lady as soon as possible." I agreed with her.

She ran past us, looking around for Lusamine. I stayed there, next to Guzma.

He looked at me, and cocked an eyebrow. "Something wrong? Your face is red."

I looked away. "U-Uh, no. Not at all. The air is just too thick. I can't breathe. I just hope we get this done as soon as possible..."

"Yeah, I hope so, too...kid." 

My olive green eyes widened when he said that, and I could see a small smirk on his lips.

I shook my head. "You know that I'm not a kid, right? I'm twenty one."

"I know. I'm just messing with you. Go on. Help Lillie defeat that lady."

I nodded, and I ran up to Lillie. I could've sworn I saw a rosy tint form on Guzma's cheeks before he turned away, crossing his arms.

When I reached her, I can seen a lot of Ultra Beasts appear before us.

Soon enough, Lusamine appeared, looking as smug as ever.

"Look at it...the world of my Ultra Beasts...a world where the only thing that exists is the love between Nihilego and myself."

So that's what its name was. But that was besides the point.

"So beautiful...so delicious...this is the real paradise."

"Oh, come off it, you bitch." I said that word venomously. Even though we were here to save her, I couldn't stand her behavior. "This isn't a paradise. This is quite the opposite. Can't you fucking see that?"

She merely scoffed at this, before gritting her teeth. "And yet, you, Gwen! Why must you continue to pester me?! I am sick of you. Sick through and through! Who told you that you could come here, to the perfect, beautiful world of my beasts and me?"

"Thin about what you are saying!" Lillie started to get angry. "What about Mr. Guzma?"

"Exactly. Don't you even care about him? The person who was like a son to you, nothing more?" I joined in.

Her expression went to one of surprise for a split second, before it went back to that venomous one.

"Just leave. I don't need you here...I don't need you any longer!" she laughed at Lillie's shocked face, and motioned her hand around. "Look around you. Look at this beautiful world that I've finally come to! You want me to go back to that world? That's what you've come to bother me for? Even you cannot be that stupid!"

Lillie shook her head. "You always do that. It's just like it was back at Aether Paradise...only thinking of yourself and what you want..."

"What...? And why shouldn't I!" the Nihilego flickered above her. "And I will live here."

Lillie huffed, resting her hands on her hips. Lusamine sat up from the rock she was on.

"I don't care if you are my child or not! I don't even care if you were loyal to me or not! Same with if you're the rarest Pokemon there is in the world!" she let out a bone-chilling laugh. "If you're not beautiful enough to be worthy of my love, than I don't need you!"

She let out a small chuckle, stretching her arms. "That's right. All I need to exist in my world are the things that I want to have with me! Everything else is just a bother to me!"

Lillie took a few steps forward, mad beyond words. "I am the one who is sick of you, Mother!" she shouted. "Children...children are not just things that belong to their parents! Pokemon are not just things that a trainer can do whatever they want to! I am alive! Cosmog is alive! We are not things for you to collect!"

Damn! She really told her! I was shocked.

"We're not made for you to just discard when you get bored with us." she resumed, back to her normal voice. "That is terrible, Mother! You are terrible!"

Lusamine merely shrugged at her words. "Terrible? Me? How am I different from any Pokémon trainer, like your little 'friend' there? What do you do with a Pokémon you can't use? You remove it from your party, as you please."

That sinister smile returned, before she rose her voice. "Enough of this useless talk, Lillie! I will never forgive you for stealing Cosmog from me. Never! Back when you were small, you would listen to everything I said, without question. For a time, even you were adorable to me!" she smirked, chuckling. "But you changed. You've become ugly. Ever since you met that woman, Gwen...and learned to defy your own mother!"

She then turned to me. "Gwen! You hateful trainer! How dare you intrude upon this world that was meant for Nihilego and me?"

"Because I need to save you and us from this place. It's not meant for you-"

"Enough! I don't want to hear your words. They mean nothing! It is not to be borne! And with Nihilego's power, I will show you how wrong you were to come here!"

The Nihilego around her disappeared, and she took a Beast Ball out, throwing it into the air. It descended down towards her head, and we watched in horror at what happened to her.

She had completely fused with the Ultra Beast. She was now part of it, with different tentacles of the beast sporting different colors. Her eyes were a chilling golden color, and her hair was a midnight blue.

She laughed menacingly, and I felt a knot form in my throat. She sent out her Clefable, and I sent out Rai in return.

I couldn't help but notice that her Pokémon now had that orange aura surrounding them. How...how was that even possible?

I shook that thought away, and commanded my Magnezone to use Steel Canon. It hit her Clefable pretty hard, and thankfully, it went down.

She sent out Lilligant, and I switched Rai out with Fira.

I commanded my Incineroar to use Flamethrower. The Lilligant took a powerful hit, but was on its last legs.

It used Leech Seed in return. It threw seeds around Fira, digging into the ground. Before I knew it, some of Fira's health was taken, and Lilligant felt more refreshed.

Crap...I hadn't expected that. I told Fira to use Flamethrower again, and her Pokémon went down.

She sent out Milotic this time, and I had to switch Fira back out with Rai.

I commanded Rai to use Thunderbolt, which hit her Milotic. It used Safeguard, to raise its defense.

I waited until that happened, so I could tell Rai to use Zap Cannon this time.

Unfortunately, Milotic dodged it, and used Hydro Pump. It was a critical hit on Rai, surprisingly, but didn't take down its health all that much, thank goodness.

Rai used Zap Cannon again, and this time, he hit the Milotic. The mystical Pokémon fainted, and Lusamine sent out Mismagius in this place.

Chills went down my spine, since I realized what this Pokémon was, but I ignored them. I switched Rai back out with Kasumi.

I commanded her to use Shadow Ball, a move I taught her not long ago to replace her Psyshock. It hit the Mismagius hard, and it fainted. I sighed in relief, since, still...Dark and Ghost type Pokémon gave me the creeps. And this Ultra Space wasn't any better.

The president sent out Bewear. I decided to keep Kasumi in. She quacked in response, since she recognized this Pokémon, from my first fight with Lusamine.

I commanded my Golduck to use Psybeam.

The Bewear winced from the attack, but wasn't down just yet. It used Pain Split. It hurt itself, and ended up having Kasumi hurt herself. Its became more energetic, while Kasumi was hurt from it.

I told her to use Psybeam again, and the Bewear took a critical hit. It landed forwards, fainting upon impact on the ground.

Realizing that all of her Pokémon were defeated, Lusamine let out a loud yell. Lillie and I watched in shock as she went to lift up one of the tentacles.

Lillie closed her eyes for a moment, calling Solgaleo to help us. It roared instantly, jumping over us to get to Lusamine.

The sun symbol from before appeared on its forehead, and before we knew it, it let out a bright, vibrating roar. It hit Lusamine head on, and a bright light nearly blinded us.

Lusamine fell down to the ground, back to her normal self again. Nihilego had removed itself from her, going back into its Beast Ball. It landed right beside her.

"Mother!" Lillie exclaimed, and ran over to her. "Mother!"

The elder platinum blonde stirred. My olive green eyes widened at her emerald, which had their bright color back compared to the dull one it was before. A warm, sincere smile formed on her lips.

She weakly lifted up her hand to Lusamine's face, brushing it softly, of which Lillie held on it. "Lillie...heh..."

Her mother started to slip out of consciousness, and tapped her index finger on Lillie's lips. Lillie's eyes widened.

"When did you...start becoming beautiful?"

Tears had formed in my eyes, and were running down my face. I had to stifle a sob with my hand. This...this was beautiful, yet so sad to watch. But I couldn't help but feel guilty for what I said about Lusamine earlier.

It turned out that she wasn't evil like I thought she was. She was actually kind and nice, and thanks to Nihilego, it had turned her into an absolute monster.

I was so relieved that she was alright now. Guzma's hurried footsteps caught my attention. He had parted his lips to say something, but a sound had boomed across the place, setting us off guard. The whole Ultra Space started to rumble.

"What now? What's going on?" Guzma looked completely baffled. "And just when things were getting good!"

The Nihilego from before appeared before us.

"There are so many Nihilego!" Lillie exclaimed.

They suddenly disappeared, and Solgaleo ran over to us. I gasped, realizing that Lusamine was starting to flicker. We were starting to do the same thing, too.

Thankfully, Solgaleo roared, and took us out of the wretched place.

We were back on solid ground in no time. Hapu looked surprised to see us.

"I was concerned so I ascended. And what do I find but the Legendary Pokémon..." she said that sentence thoughtfully. "And a large hole. I'm relieved to see you all unharmed!"

Lillie grinned, running over to her. "Hapu! Is my mother...?"

Hapu closed her eyes for a moment, then turned to Guzma. "You there, big fellow. Carry the lady, will you? She is weak, but I don't believe that she is seriously harmed. We should take her to be treated directly."

Guzma pivoted around. "Huh?" his grey eyes then rested on Lusamine. "Oh."

He glanced over at me before heading over to Hapu, helping her put Lusamine on Mudsdale. I could've sworn that he was blushing at me, just like before.

I had blushed, too, when we made eye contact, but I had quickly looked away. 

Hapu had thanked me for doing well for guiding Lillie, despite her not being a trainer like I was. She also congratulated Lillie as well, and told her that they'll be waiting for her below.

"Th-thank you, Hapu..." was all she could say right now.

When Hapu went to converse with Guzma, she turned to Solgaleo. "Solgaleo...all I ever wanted to do was help you get back to your own home...but instead, you helped me, over and over..." she took a breather, and smiled afterwards. "Thank you."

Solgaleo roared, but not as loud as before.

Lillie giggled. "I take it you want to keep traveling with Gwen and me, is that it?"

Solgaleo responded with a loud roar this time.

"Looks like I was right! Of course I was. After all, we've been together so long. We're family now, aren't we? Of course I can tell how you feel! Because I feel the same. We met so many people as we traveled around Alola's islands - Professor Kukui and his wife, Professor Burnet, Kahuna Hala and his grandson, Hau...and of course the hero who appeared to save you when those Spearow attacked - our own Gwen. And so many other people, too..."

She started to converse with Solgaleo, telling her about Alola being pretty great, despite it not coming from this world. I had to agree with her there.

Suddenly, Solgaleo looked towards me, when Lillie had noticed that it had been doing that the whole time. She told me that she wanted me to take on the Legendary Pokémon, just like a Trainer could.

She wanted me to give it a ball to call home.

I smiled at this, taking the Master Ball out of my handbag. Looks like I finally could use this.

Solgaleo approached me, and I did the same. I waited a few good minutes until I threw the Master Ball at him.

I waited patiently for it to move three times, then click. It did, and I nearly shouted in victory. I couldn't believe this.

Solgaleo...the one that Lillie trusted so much when it was Cosmog, up until now, was my Pokémon. It felt like an honor, really.

Rotomdex, which had been shut down the whole time during Ultra Space - which I figured since it couldn't work in the realm, told me that Solgaleo was a Psychic and Steel type. Very interesting.

"What do you want to name it, Gwen, zz-t?" Rotomdex questioned me.

"Well..." I thought about it for a moment, then grinned. "What about Leo?"


	33. Time Passages, and a Descending Title

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quite a few months have passed since the chaotic events, with Lillie's departure to Gwen's new reign as Champion. Gwen gives herself some time to think over everything that happened, especially with her newfound feelings for Guzma. Perhaps it's time to finally tell him.

It had been quite a few months since all of that had happened. Lillie had taken her mother to Kanto to find a cure for her mother, once Hapu told her about it. Hau was quite heartbroken to see her leave. I could hear him sniffle a bit, but Professor Kukui was there to cheer him up.

Later on, he presented us the Pokemon League, completely built. It was beautiful, it truly was. My Pokemon had gotten stronger, and I felt like I could take the League on. Hau had followed me to do his as well.

However, I hadn't expected to see Gladion at all. He had me battle him with his new Pokemon, and the evolved form of his trusted companion, Silvally. Once I had defeated him, he had told me that I would do well, adding a smile for the first time in, well, weeks. He had mentioned coming across Moon, which I had heard of before, and by the rosy pigment that dusted on his cheeks, I could tell that he took a liking to her.

I had eventually made it up to the Pokemon League, and healed my Pokemon at the nearby Pokemon Center. Hau had stopped me before I set foot in the League, and had me battle him.

To be frank, he pouted when I beat him...but, knowing him, that didn't stay for long. He had grinned brightly per usual, handing me reward money and a couple Max Revives as a gift.

I said my goodbyes to him, and went into the League, wishing him luck in it after I was done. I had defeated Hala, Acerola, Olivia, and Kahili, a newcomer to Alola. It took me a while to defeat them, but I tried my best. My Pokémon had all fainted the first time, which made me realize that I hadn't thought my strategy through. But on the second time, I had made sure to use a better one.

Before I knew it, I was at the top of the mountain, literally. There stood the Champion's chair, and I sat down on it. To my surprise, Kukui was there. He had told me that I was the Champion, but not instantly. He had battled me, and all of my Pokémon almost fainted. But I fought and made sure that I won. I congratulated him for his amazing strategy, and he did the same for me.

A ceremony was held in victory for me becoming the first Alola Champion, and it felt great! Everyone was there, including Gladion, who smiled before leaving the place. Kukui had come in his Masked Royal uniform, and I could've sworn that Professor Burnet was blushing at this. Perhaps she finally knew that her husband was Masked Royal himself, no matter how many times he tried to deny it.

Kiawe had danced with his Marowak, putting on quite a show. Mallow had prepared meals for us, which were quite good, and not spicy like the food at her trial.

It felt great being the Champion for a while, but I soon realized how stressful it was. Sure, it was easier to beat the Elite Four, but it was quite a big job. Katherine had become a Champion in Unova...and she told me how stressful it was, despite it being fun. Now I know how it feels.

The second time I had faced the Pokémon League, I wasn't surprised to see Hau there. I beat him easily, but after him, a fair-skinned girl with short dark hair stepped up.

She introduced herself as Moon, and challenged me for my title. I had smiled at her enthusiasm, and battled her. However, I let her win the title, and she replaced me as Champion of Alola.

Someone in disguise had come to my house after that, and told me to meet them at the Akala Motel. That's where I met a lavender-haired woman named Anabel, and her assistant, Mr. Looker. I went on several missions with them to find the Ultra Beasts that were around the islands during Lusamine's corruption, and after I finished them, I was given a huge reward.

However, I ended up giving most of that money to the Aether Foundation. They needed it after all that happened. But I had saved some to help Ronnie, so I didn't have anything left to help Team Skull.

When I had visited Kukui, back in Iki Town, he was happy to see me. He was talking to his wife beforehand.

"Hey, there's the Champion of Alola, yeah!" he stood up, giving me a quick hug. "How's it feel?"

"Great, but I'm no longer the Champion, Kukui."

"You're not?" his eyes widened, and so did Burnet's. She got off of the couch, and rushed over, the zig-zag strands of her white hair bouncing with her movement.

"Are you kidding around with us, hun?" she questioned me.

I shook my head. "Moon, the trainer you mentioned before, took my title. I had let her win, since after a few days, I realized how stressful it was. I didn't think much of the job until then, and that's why I had stepped down. Moon's still working to become the best she can, and she deserves to have that title."

"...Wow. That was really nice of you to do that for her, Gwen." Burnet placed a hand on my shoulder, a warm smile etched on her lips. "But I do understand how stressful being a Champion can be. It tires them out after a while, but they take the title because it's a honor...and they want to show how far they've come."

"Yeah. Thank you for understanding, Burnet." I nodded, absently rubbing my hand on the sleeve of my t-shirt. When I had noticed that, my expression changed. "Oh...I've been meaning to tell you guys something, too. Actually, two things."

Kukui gave me a puzzled look, before I gestured over to the couch in the living room. We seated ourselves there, and I drew in a breath.

"...Remember when we were at Malie Garden, and Guzma had pointed out my scars?"

Kukui nodded. "Yeah, what about them?"

I told them about what happened to me, and the tears had immediately pooled my eyes. I ended up burying my hands in my face, stifling the sobs. My eyes widened when I felt both Burnet and Kukui's arms wrap around me, and I couldn't help but hug them in return.

I wiped the tears from my eyes. "Thank you both. That really means a lot."

"No problem, cousin. Nobody should have to go through that, even from their own parents." Kukui smiled. "I'm so glad Ronnie took you in thirteen years ago. She's a better parent than they ever were."

"Agreed." I smiled. I felt a lot better, but my smile soon faltered. "And the second thing I wanted to tell you about was...um, about Guzma."

"Guzma?" The dark-skinned professor cocked an eyebrow. He let out a hearty laugh when he noticed my face douse in red. "Oh, I should've known. How long has this been going on?"

"About five months." I replied. "I started liking him before we saved Lusamine from Nihilego's grasp, after I realized what he's like. He's...he's not that different from me, and I know this sounds weird, but I would like to know what makes us similar. Whatever he might have gone through isn't going to be positive, I'm sure."

"Yeah. I think it would be best for you to find him and confess your love-"

"Are you crazy? After all the hate we had towards each other?! I'm sure he's going to be pissed at me for what I did in Ultra Space."

"I don't think so, Gwen." Kukui was dead serious, and I felt awful for snapping at him. "Don't think that he'll reject you. You might be surprised, cousin."

You might be surprised... those words passed through my head. I knew I heard them before. Wait a moment. Plumeria said something similar before I did Hapu's trial! She was referring to Guzma!

"You're right! Kukui, do you know where I can find Plumeria?"

He took a moment to think. "She's in one of the trailers in the Akala outskirts, close to the motel. You won't miss it."

"Thanks so much!" I hugged Kukui, then Burnet, and was off. Of course, I said my goodbyes to them before doing so.

o o o o

I landed near the motel, thanks to Charizard on my Ride Pager. I had returned to my normal clothing before heading to the trailers. A male Team Skull grunt saw me, and figuring that I was here for the admin, he nodded to the door.

Without hesitation, I opened it, and screamed. Plumeria screamed in return. It looks like we both scared each other.

"S-Sorry about that, Plumeria..." I laughed nervously. "I didn't mean to-" my olive green eyes widened when I saw her outlook. "Wow, you look different."

And she was. She didn't have the white make-up around her eyelids anymore, just the dark eyeshadow. The Team Skull tattoo was gone from her waist, and she donned on a purple bandanna with a pink flame designed on it.

"Of course I do." she spoke once I closed the door, approaching her afterwards. "Team Skull had trouble staying together after you saved Aether Paradise from the darkness that it was in. I'm not saying that it's your fault or anything, but...look where it's gotten us."

My heart sunk a bit. "I see. I'm sorry-"

"No need to apologize, Gwen. It was inevitable. Guzma realized how useless this gang was, and disbanded it after three months. He couldn't keep it together, and he was drinking more than usual." she exhaled, then opened her eyes. "He's an idiot, that's for sure. I used to love him, but it seemed that he wasn't for me. After that, I realized that he just wanted us to be friends, nothing more."

"Wow." I hadn't known that. I felt bad for her. "Plumeria-"

"It's alright. It's in the past, anyways. I don't really have feelings for guys anymore. Besides that, I take it you're wanting to know where Guzma is?"

My face heated up. "Yeah, I do."

"He lives on Route 2, in the small house with the swing in the backyard. You can't miss it."

"Thanks, Plumeria." I smiled.

Plumeria returned it. "No problem, Gwen. Anything for a friend. I hope your encounter with Guzma goes well."

I nodded in gratitude, and left the trailer. I summoned Charizard again, and headed for Hau'oli City.

I had remembered seeing that house before, but it never really clicked with me that that was his house. I had thought it was a little kid's house, but they were inside, taking a nap, so that's why I hadn't seen them.

My thoughts were broken up when Charizard landed in front of me, and I hopped onto it. My hair whipped me in the face while the large dragon Pokémon took me to the destined location. That's when my thought train continued running on its tracks.

I had been thinking of Guzma ever since the Ultra Space fiasco. I had felt bad for him a lot, and I still do. I can't believe it took me that long to realize that. I was blinded by his attitude, thinking that he was just some idiot that was taking positivity away from other people, that being their Pokémon.

But I was wrong. He, Plumeria, and their grunts had nothing to survive on. They had to sell Pokémon in order to make a profit, to stay alive. That's why they raided Po Town, so they could have a place to call home...even though they knew it wasn't.

I truly felt sympathy for them. I couldn't believe how rude I was towards them, especially Guzma. I should've known before what he had gone through...

And I hoped that, like Plumeria said, that this confession to Guzma would go well. I loved him too much to see him mad at me like this.


	34. The Words Finally Come Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen succeeds in finding Guzma's house. His reaction towards her is unsurprisingly rocky, but she will still be in the surprise for her life once they have their final battle.

I landed at Guzma's house. Charizard flew away once I did so.

Silence immediately took over me. It sent chills up my spine. I twiddled with my thumbs, trying to calm my nervousness down. But I couldn't help it.

Everything had changed in Ultra Space between us. We had gone from arguing and insulting each other to being...well, just plain awkward. It felt odd noticing the change between us. I just hoped that Guzma wasn't mad about it.

I walked up the stairs, and approached the door. I knocked on it, expecting an answer.

A muffled "Come in, Gwendolyn" was heard. I froze when I heard my full name.

That was Guzma. And by his tone, he wasn't happy. I figured as such.

I turned the door knob, and opened the door. I looked around the place, seeing the light cream colored walls. The kitchen was on the right, while the living room and a door was on the left.

Guzma was standing in the middle of the room, hands on his hips. He no longer had the purple Team Skull tattoos on his arms, and he had red duct tape covering the Team Skull logo on his jacket.

My eyes averted from him when I heard a man cough out of the blue. I figured that was his father, who was looking away from Guzma. My eyes then fell on the golf clubs in the corner. At first, I thought they were in good condition. But I narrowed my eyes to get a better look, and gasped.

They were broken. My eyes shifted from those, then to Guzma's father. My face paled. Why would his father do such a thing?

Well, I take that back. It made sense. My parents had often used items to abuse me with, but it still made me sick.

My attention set back on Guzma, and I opened my mouth. "Guzma, I-"

"...You...you brat."

My eyes widened at this. "...What?"

"I don't think what you think you're doing here, but I actually needed to talk to you. Get your rear over to the Hau'oli City Beachfront!"

I knew that I couldn't retort that. I was shocked at his words, but I knew I had to follow with them. "Alright See you there."

He left without another word, and I had no choice but to follow him. He had walked with his hands delved into his pockets the whole time. It didn't take us that long to get there.

It was already getting dark out. Stars were splashed around the sky. There wasn't any people out on the beach.

Guzma stood close to the corner of the beach. He took his hands out of his pockets, resting them on his hips.

I was able to make out his face this time, especially with the moonlight tracing his features.

He did look annoyed, not mad like I had thought he was. I couldn't blame him. Because of me, his gang had struggled to stay together, but eventually had to disband.

"So, what is it you needed to talk to me about, Guzma?"

"Well..." he exhaled. "this is to make up for when I had to disband Team Skull! Just so you know, I'll never change, Gwen."

I couldn't help but notice his signature smile was on his lips. I copied it. "I'm sure you won't. I take it that you want a battle?"

"You took the words right out of my mouth." he drew in a breath. "Wanna see destruction in its human form? It's your boy, Guzma!"

He withdrew an Ultra Ball from his jacket, sending out his trusted Pokémon, Golispod. I sent out my Magnezone, Rai, in return.

I commanded it to use Thunderbolt, and Golispod took the hit.

It went down immediately, and I could've sworn Guzma had chuckled before he sent out Masquerian.

I switched Rai out with Fira. Fira roared happily, causing me to giggle a tad. I told her to use Flamethrower.

The flames nearly singed the bug-type Pokémon's body, but it was a critical hit nonetheless. Guzma exhaled when Masquerian fainted, and sent Ariados out in its place.

I commanded Fira to use Flame Burst this time. His Ariados made the first move, however, and used Sucker Punch on my Incineroar.

It wasn't really effective on her, since she was part Dark. She went with the move I told her to use, and Ariados fainted after the flames hit it.

Guzma sent it back into its Ultra Ball, and let out Scizor.

I remember seeing this Pokémon before, back in my visit of Kanto. I was kind of jealous that he had that Poké- Gwen, you need to focus!

I commanded Fira to use Flamethrower for the second time, and Scizor took the hit.

It was almost on its last legs. Guzma told the bipedial bug Pokémon to use X-Scissor.

It dashed towards Fira, slashing her in the shape of an X. She took quite a bit of damage, but not that much to the point that she needed to be given a Max Potion.

I told her to use Darkest Lariat in return, and watched as she took a step back, soon charging at Scizor. It wasn't that effective, but it took the Scizor down.

Guzma switched Scizor out with his last Pokémon, Pinsir. 

I went ahead and switched Fira out with Shiro. I wanted to give Fira a break, so she wouldn't end up exhausted. Shiro chirped happily at this.

I told her to use Air Cutter, but once again, Guzma beat me to it.

He told his Pinsir to use Stone Edge, and I held my breath, hoping that this wouldn't be a one-hit attack.

Thankfully, it wasn't. Shiro had taken quite a bit of damage from the attack, and the stones had cut against her feathers, but to the point that she was seriously hurt. I exhaled in relief, and watched as my Toucannan used the move.

It was super effective against his Pinsir, and it went down in one hit. I pumped my fist in the air, healing Shiro afterwards.

Guzma's grey eyes widened, and he made an expression of utter disbelief. "How...how come I can't crush you?!" he exclaimed, before handing me reward money. He soon exhaled, letting out a long breath of air. "...You actually did quite well, Gwen."

His smile made my face heat up. "T-Thanks. You did, too. Listen, I'm sorry about everything that happened with Team Skull. I...I hadn't expected it to disband like that because of the dark Aether Foundation fiasco, and-"

"It's alright, really." he approached me, crossing his arms. His voice was sincere. "You don't need to apologize for it, Gwen. I had forgiven you for that months ago."

"You did?" my eyebrows rose.

"Yeah. I was a bit mad about Team Skull struggling, and I was telling myself that you were the cause of it. But I was lying to myself. I knew you weren't the reason why. It was me. I had trusted Lusamine during her crazed state, believing that she would help us out. But all she wanted us was for her plan, and she didn't even care about us at all...it was too late to step out of it and say no to her. I had looked up to Lusamine as a parent I didn't have. My mother is a good person, but my father never was. Lusamine was like him, but female. I had trusted her from the start, and look where that got me. She used me for her own benefit, just like my father used me to get known through trophies."

My heart sunk at this. "Guzma...I'm terribly sorry to hear that. I take it your father abused you?"

His eyes widened for the second time. "How did you know that?"

"The broken golf clubs in the corner of the living room. It's obvious that he did that to you, didn't he?"

The former Team Skull boss was quiet, and bit down at his bottom lip. He was trying his best not to cry. He slowly nodded.

To his surprise, however, I pulled him into a hug, holding him close. He must have had a surprised look on his face, since he didn't except it for about a minute or so. It...it felt heartwarming to hug him. I hadn't hugged him at all during the times we encountered each other.

I could hear him sobbing on my shoulder, and I patted his back to help him calm down. Once that happened, I exhaled.

"I know how it feels, Guzma...to have an abusive father."

"What...?" he pulled himself away, looking into my eyes. His eyes were bloodshot from tears. "Did you have one?"

"I did. My...my mother was also abusive to me as well. That's where my scars are from."

His eyebrows furrowed at this, and it seemed that he had forgotten about them. I pulled up both of my sleeves, showing him the scars on my arms.

He gasped, and his expression softened. "Gwen-"

"It was awful what they did to me." tears were immediately forming in my eyes, just like they did when I had told Lillie and the two professors, Kukui and Burnet. "I...I had always looked up to my parents when I was little. They were quite famous in the business world, and they seemed to be doing fine. Mom was the owner of a coordinator company, and Dad was the co-owner of it. They had me to show for that, and wanted me to be like them. I wanted to be like them. But no. Their business suddenly went bankrupt six years later, and they were under intense stress. They would often take it out on me, and being six years old, I didn't understand why. I just ignored it, thinking nothing would happen. ...But I was wrong. So fucking wrong." 

I paused, trying to the tears from my eyes, but they kept coming. It was like an eternal stream of a river. It just went on and on.

"A year later, I was helping them around the house, like I always did. I was often clumsy, and broke stuff. They would yell at me for it, but the words...they hurt a lot more than a year before. They ended up hitting me with the items to the point that I was bruised and had nearly deep cuts on my arms. It hurt so much, and I ran to my room to get away from them. The door had been locked when I did that. My parents were telling me to stay there, and don't ever come out. They called me a disappointment...that I shouldn't have ever been born. It turned out that was true. They didn't love me. They pretended they did. They had me from a drunken night gone wrong, and it looked like their drinking problems had cost them their job. They had lied to me...their only daughter this whole time. They probably did this to a supposed relative of mine as well, one that I cared about. They told me that he had run away, but I don't know for sure. ...Thankfully, Ronnie had arrived, and arrested my parents. I never saw them again, since Ronnie adopted me when we met." a watery smile formed on my lips. "And I'm so happy for that. But...but that was like hell for such a long time, and I...I-"

It was Guzma's turn to hug me, and my eyes broadened at this. I accepted the hug, holding tightly onto his jacket. I cried onto it, and Guzma let me calm down after a while.

"...You didn't deserve to have that happen to you. That sounds a lot more worse than what I went through, but still just as bad. I'm so glad Ronnie adopted you. You deserve her more than those twisted freaks."

I laughed at this, surprised that he actually said that. But he was telling the truth.

"I mean it, Gwen. You mean so much to me more than you know-"

He had covered his mouth at that, and my face doused in red. "W-What?"

"I didn't mean to let that slip out, but I would've said it sooner or later." he took my hand, holding it softly. "What, I mean is that...I...I have fallen in love with you, Gwen. I felt awful for all the things I said towards you when we met. I had figured that you were just a normal trainer, looking to stop me from what I was doing. But you weren't. You were brave enough to take us on, and I had figured by your reaction to the scars that we were similar somehow. I was rude about that, thinking I knew everything...but I didn't. Overall, I was a jerk. But I had fallen for you for your bravery and spunk, also because you're beautiful. You really are."

He drew a breath. "Here, I thought love was just a word. Heh." a rosy pigment dusted his cheeks. "Looks like you proved me wrong, Gwen."

I smiled at this, shuffling my feet in the sand. "I guess so. I had fallen for you as well, Guzma."

"You did?" This, he didn't expect.

"Yeah. Quite a surprise, isn't it? It had happened when we were in Ultra Space. I had picked up the puzzle pieces from when we first met, then the second, and so on. I honestly thought you were a jerk, hence why we argued a lot. But when you freaked out about being possessed, feeling fear for the first time, that's when I fell for you. I still feel bad for you to have gone through that, and now I know that you also went through awful stuff as a child. ...But it turns out we both did. So...I love you, too. I really do."

Guzma smiled, out of relief. This whole time, I thought he would be mad at me. Well, I guess I was wrong.

"I've been worried about that. I'm so glad you feel the same way."

"I do, too-"

My eyes widened when he suddenly pulled me close, locking lips. My face heated up big time. I closed my eyes, and returned the kiss, wrapping my arms around his neck.

We were like that for a few minutes until a booming voice got our attention. We turned to see Hala there, much to our surprise.

He and Guzma got into a conversation, and he pretended to be cool like he always did. I couldn't help but giggle at this, but it looked like he eventually accepted what Hala said.

The kahuna said that he would wait for Guzma in the city. He obviously saw that he was occupied beforehand. Guzma's face nearly went red, and so did mine.

"So, what happened? What did he say?"

"He offered for me to train with him. I have known him since I was a little kid, even before his grandson was born. I think it would be a great opportunity, but...but I wanted to visit you off and on. Oh. I almost forgot."

He dug into his jeans pocket, handing me a bright teal jewel. I didn't know what it was.

"It's a Dawn Stone. I got it for my first ever victory, and since then, it's been my lucky charm." he rubbed the back of his neck, smiling bashfully. "But, I think you deserve it, Hazel."

"Hazel-" I stopped myself, then realized he just made a nickname to my hazel brown hair. "Oh, I get it. I guess I should start calling you snow flurry."

"Don't do it!" he frowned, but it was a joking one. He gave me a quick hug before pivoting around.

He looked over his shoulder, smiling. "Who knows what the Alolan winds will bring? Next time, I'm counting on you to test how strong I've gotten. See you, Gwen."

He winked at the end of his sentence, and I nearly fainted. The whole walk home, I was smiling like crazy. I felt more happy than I did in my entire life.


	35. EPILOGUE [1/2] - To an End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwen is happy about going steady with Guzma and time passes once she's told Ronnie and Katherine. She is having a blissful time dating the former boss before someone from her past shows up at her door.

I had my head in the clouds ever since I got together with Guzma. I couldn't believe that it happened, after the last couple of months we had known each other.

I hadn't expected to be with someone I hated...but soon began to love later on. I never want to leave his side. ...Yeah, that sounds cheesy, I know. But I mean it.

I had told Ronnie about what had happened, and she looked quite surprised to hear about it. She had asked to meet Guzma himself, but I told her that he was talking to Hala. She eventually met him, and hasn't stopped teasing me since. And please don't get me started with Katherine. Once I told her, she nearly caused my ear to fall off from the squealing.

Guzma has visited me often, and we've had a few dates together. He created two new nicknames for me, Fire Girl and Spunk Girl. And in return, I call him bug boy. Just like our favorite types, Bugs and Fire. Silly, isn't it? He's also great at jokes, and I nearly snorted at them.

Sadly, the two weeks had passed by quicker than I had thought, and Guzma had taken me to the Hau'oli Beachfront, where we had first told our pasts to each other and confessed our love. He told me that his training with Hala will take a long time, and he hoped that it wouldn't be for that long.

He gave me one last kiss before heading off with Hala. I haven't seen him in a couple of days, but I'm sure he'll be back, just like he said.

I've been holding the Dawn Stone he had given me since he left. I've trained my Pokémon for a while, to help cope with him being gone and training on his own. Leo has tried to comfort me with its nuzzling, and so has Fira. I really appreciated that, and it made me feel better. Even Ronnie made her special dish that lifted my spirits.

One day, however, my lifted spirits came to a halt when someone had knocked on the door. Ronnie's face had paled a bit, and I was wondering why that happened.

I ran out of my room, and to the door. I froze upon seeing a man at the door. It wasn't Guzma, that's for sure.

What was he doing here?


	36. EPILOGUE [2/2] - Gwen and Stark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The person from her past reveals who he is and Gwen feels a mix of emotions over the fact of their sudden reunion. She's glad to have formed trust in him again like she did with Guzma.

"W-Who are you?" I stared at the man, my eyes widened with disbelief as I observed his outlook.

He had short, dark brown hair, and the same olive green eyes as mine, as well as the same fair skin. He wore a black T-shirt with the letter R embedded on it in a crimson color. Dark jeans and sneakers finished it off.

He got my attention by smiling. "I'm Stark Meititrice, the leader of Team Reaper. But you might know me as Stark Baum...sister."

My eyebrows furrowed. "Team what? And why are you calling me sister?!"

Stark drew in a breath, delving his hands into his pockets. "Team Reaper is - was a team of mine that I made. It was a lot more sinister than the other teams you may have heard of, since we were set on killing trainers, but not their Pokémon. We were set on bloodshed...but I realized that it wasn't the right way to go. I was the relative that ran away. Our parents weren't lying about that, Gwendolyn."

"Don't call me Gwendolyn!" I snapped. "How do you know my parents?"

"It's because I am their eldest son of the family!" tears were starting to form in his eyes. "I'm...I'm not surprised that you don't remember your own brother."

A memory started to rush into my head when he spoke that last sentence. I started to remember that a young boy, around five years older than me, was near me. He was playing along with the toys I had, and I was pretending to be a coordinator. However, angry voices could be heard, ceasing his playdate with me.

It was unmistakably my parents' voices. For some reason, they were mad at him for playing with me. Thuds could be heard, including yelps from the older kid. Rapid footsteps followed afterwards, then the slam of a door.

I thought I heard my father say good riddance, and that's when the memory finished. Tears were falling down from my face, but I didn't care. ...This...this guy was my brother, Stark Baum. I hadn't seen him in fifteen years!

How could I have been so stupid?!

"...I'm...I'm sorry, Stark..." my voice trembled. "It has been so long since we've seen each other, and you became a distant memory that almost faded over the years. I thought that you had run away because of our parents, and that was true. However, that was before they started abusing me."

"Dammit." I could hear him mutter, running his hands furiously through his dark brown hair. Now that I remembered, he had inherited that from our father, as well as the eyes that we both shared. "I knew that was going to happen. I should've been there to get you away from our parents, but I chickened out. I had only cared about getting away from them, feeling the freedom of being away from their abuse for good. ...I..I should've come back. You didn't deserve to get abused as well, Gwen."

"You're...you're right." I sniffed, pulling him into a caring hug. He returned it, and we stayed like that for a while. "We didn't deserve it. Our parents shouldn't have had us in the first place if they knew that their drinking problems would come back to haunt them. But then again, it's a good thing that we were born...because we learned to get away from it and move on, even though it'll still haunt us until the day we die."

"...Yeah, it would." He pulled away, wiping the tears from his eyes, then mine. "I am so happy to see you again, sis. I've been looking all over for you."

"You have?" my eyebrows rose.

"I had one of the scientists for Team Reaper help track you down, and that's how I got here. But I had already explained what the team was, to get away from our parents and get revenge. ...It'll soon disband once I get in contact with the admins." he coughed. "...Anyways, I noticed that you've changed a lot since we last met. How have things been going for you in Alola?"

"Great, actually." I went into a long explanation of how I became a Trainer, thanks to Kukui and Ronnie's advice, then finished with settling things with Guzma and getting together with him.

I could tell that Stark was feeling overprotective about this, but I reassured him that Guzma was actually a good person, but had done bad things that he regrets. Also that Guzma was willing to protect me whenever it was needed. Stark seemed to calm down, then.

Just as I had finished, Fira had popped out of her Pokeball, startling Stark. I explained that she was my Incineroar, the first Pokémon that I had, which was a Fire type from the beginning, then a Dark and Fire type. I told him that Acerola's trial had dealt with Ghost types, which made me scared for a bit.

To my surprise, he laughed. He hadn't expected me to be scared of them, until I told him why. He then showed me his Pokémon - A Gengar, Absol, Mismagius, and an Umbreon. He told me that we must be opposites, then, when it came to that.

I couldn't help but laugh a bit. He had challenged me to a battle outside, to see how strong his sister was. Well, guess what? He ended up losing, and was shocked beyond words.

Ronnie treated us to dinner afterwards, and sadly, Stark had to go. He said that he would email me so we could catch up, and form the bond that we used to share those many years ago.

To be honest, I thought that Stark was someone I couldn't trust...one that I had heard about only from Acerola. But I'm glad he came, and made me realize that I shouldn't have forgotten about him.


End file.
